Security Police (Japan)

VIP Protection Division[1]
Active13 September 1975 - present[2]
CountryJapan
AgencyTokyo Metropolitan Police Department
TypeClose protection
Part ofSecurity Bureau[3]
HeadquartersTokyo, Japan
Common nameSecurity Police[1]
AbbreviationSP

The Security Police is the close protection division of the Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department.[1] Under the Security Bureau of the TMPD, the division is responsible for protecting domestic and foreign dignitaries on Japanese soil and abroad.[1][4]

The division's agents are commonly known as Security Police (SP) (セキュリティポリス, Sekyuritī Porisu).[1][5] The word "SP" is a loanword used in the Japanese law enforcement system, based on the badge worn by the agents.[3]

The SP insignia on a SP officer's business suit

The division does not protect the Imperial Family as they have their own dedicated division, the Imperial Protection Division.[1]

  1. ^ a b c d e f "Securing Tokyo and its citizens" (PDF). Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department. 2016. p. 25. Archived from the original (PDF) on 17 November 2017.
  2. ^ Cite error: The named reference Rakuten was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  3. ^ a b "What is the Security Police?". Japan Security Management Academy (in Japanese). Archived from the original on 2010-01-17.
  4. ^ 各国の要人を護れ 警視庁警護課ＳＰの仕事 (in Japanese). Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department. Archived from the original on 2014-03-04.
  5. ^ "都民と首都の安全を守る万全な警備" 警備. Tokyo Metropolitan Police (in Japanese). Archived from the original on 2012-02-03.