A recent announcement revealed that the Pokémon Center Mega Tokyo outlet and Pikachu Sweets Café, which are situated adjacent to one another on the second floor of the Sunshine City building in Higashi-Ikebukuro, Tokyo, will reopen their doors after being temporarily closed four months ago. The reopening is scheduled to take place starting August 24.
The temporary closure was a direct result of a tragic stabbing incident on March 26. During the event, a man wielding two knives fatally attacked a female employee before ending his own life. It was later confirmed that the victim had been a target of stalking prior to the incident, and the assailant was identified as her ex-boyfriend, who had disregarded a restraining order to enter the Pokémon Center where she worked.
In response to the tragedy, The Pokémon Company made the decision to shut down Pokémon Center Mega Tokyo temporarily. They also took the additional step of suspending all planned Pokémon Center events across Japan for the entire month of April. Any tournaments that could not be rescheduled were conducted without spectators in attendance.
Prior to reopening, Pokémon Center Mega Tokyo will undergo partial renovations and implement enhanced security measures to safeguard both employees and customers. The stores will enforce temporary entry capacity limits following their reopening, with specific entry procedures to be disclosed at a later time.