Greenpeace members arrested in Japan for theft of whale meat

Japanese police arrested two Greenpeace activists on Friday on suspicion of stealing about 50 pounds (23 kilograms) of whale meat that the environmentalists said had been illegally siphoned by whalers from government-backed hunts.

Greenpeace members Junichi Sato, 31, and Toru Suzuki, 41, allegedly stole a container with the meat from a postal company warehouse in Aomori, northern Japan, in April, police said in a statement.

The Japanese government kills about 1,000 whales a year under a whaling program allowed under international rules, and sells the meat as food. Greenpeace and other whaling opponents say the program is a cover for commercial hunting, …