Ok I'm just relating the facts as they happened. The only 'trouble' I had in Japan was a group of Africans who tried to rob/pickpocket me with the 'ol 5 on 1 grab and run. No violence, just haaaaaands. Broad daylight on the Tokyo sidewalk.
They got nothing. The moneybelt is mightier than the wallet. Or the African thief, for that matter.