A YouTuber with 2.4 million subscribers apologized on Tuesday after a video of him and three others free-riding around Japan became the latest example of fame-seeking foreigners riling locals.
"Hello beautiful people i apologize to the Japanese people if we made them feel bad that was not our goal ! from now on i am going to be make more research to the cultures we go to and try to prevent this from happening again," the YouTuber known by the username Fidias posted on his channel on Tuesday.
Fidias posted a video over the weekend of him and three others riding trains and buses around Japan — in some cases without paying.
In the video, Fidias hides in a toilet of a bullet train, pretends to be ill when confronted by a ticket collector, and then escapes to board another train where he pulls the same trick.
Another clip shows him entering a hotel and pretending to be a guest in order to get free breakfast.
"I just (got) access to a five-star Japanese buffet. And we're leaving the hotel without getting caught and without any problem," he triumphantly tells the camera.
Other parts of the video show the four, one of whom appears to be the YouTuber Night Scape who has 1.7 million followers, begging money from locals to pay for tickets.
It was unclear when the footage was shot or whether the three men and one woman were still in Japan.
"Another strange, annoying YouTuber from abroad emerged. In addition to this guy Fidias, the three others should be arrested," one social media user said in Japanese.
Another said: "surprisingly, comments section to his (online post) is full of applause. (Police) should arrest him to prevent copycat crimes from happening."
Regional train operator JR Kyushu said it was studying the footage before deciding whether to inform the police.
"We are aware of the case and investigating facts around it," a spokesperson told Agence France-