Prison inmates granted temporary release prior to parole will be monitored via GPS under a new Justice Ministry system.

The plan will take effect June 1, ministry officials said.

Fears that inmates will run off have discouraged many wardens from awarding them temporary release, for vocational training for example.

The new system, which will be applied to such inmates as traffic offenders who have exhibited good behavior, was presented at a judicial affairs policy meeting of the Democratic Party of Japan.

Detention facility officials will ask inmates to carry GPS-equipped cellphones and wear small devices attached to a wrist or ankle before they leave the prison grounds. The officials will be automatically informed if the mobile phone is not in the vicinity of the device.