Tourist drinks from grave offering, Australian embassy issues warning

The Australian Embassy in Japan warned travellers after Lochie Jones drank an offering at a burial site. Photo / Getty Images

The Australian Embassy in Japan issued a warning to travellers to behave themselves after an Instagrammer drank offerings from a Japanese burial site, provoking widespread anger online.

In the most recent example of fame-seeking foreigners riling locals, Lochie Jones – reportedly an Australian tourist – posted a clip of himself swigging from a can placed on a headstone as an offering.

Moments earlier, he’s seen flipping a coin to decide whether to open the beverage, likely left as a gift for ancestors in a gesture common in Japan.

He’s then seen burping in front of the grave.

The video – which was posted last month – prompted angry comments online.

Australian YouTuber Lochie Jones is under fire for going to Japan and drinking a beer that was left on someone's grave as tribute

Japanese locals reported him to authorities and claim he should be deported for "defiling graves" pic.twitter.com/eqie4FySd1

— Dexerto (@Dexerto) September 1, 2025

“Graveyards are sacred places in any country ... I want [the Government] to make sure he can never enter Japan [again],” one X user said.

On Tuesday, the Australian Embassy warned on Facebook that travellers must ensure “appropriate behaviour” while visiting Japan, without explicitly referring to the video.

The embassy, which did not respond to a request for comment from AFP, said on Facebook that it “works closely with Japanese authorities to ensure that travellers from Australia respect and observe local laws and rules”.

Jones apologised over the incident in an Instagram video on Tuesday.

The incident comes after a YouTuber with 2.4 million subscribers, known as Fidias, posted a video in 2023 of himself and three others free-riding around Japan – before he later apologised.

Japanese police also arrested a United States livestreamer known as Johnny Somali for allegedly trespassing on to a construction site.

According to video footage, Ismael Ramsey Khalid, 23, wore a facemask and repeatedly shouted “Fukushima” to construction workers who urged him to leave the site, police officer Genta Hayashi told AFP, referring to the stricken nuclear power plant.

Another clip shows Khalid, who describes himself as a former child soldier, harassing train passengers with references to the US atomic bombings of Japan in 1945.

An unprecedented number of tourists are flocking to Japan, but some residents have become fed up with unruly behaviour.

A town near Mt Fuji last year mounted a large barrier to deter photo-taking at a popular viewing spot beside a convenience store where people were increasingly venturing into the road to get the perfect shot.

The “Japanese first” Sanseito party, which has tapped into growing concerns over over-tourism and immigration, made strong gains in an upper house election this year.

-Agence France-Presse