NAGOYA — A man suspected of stealing about 5,000 pairs of shoes in order to enjoy their odor has been arrested, police said Wednesday.

“I was enjoying their smell,” Masashi Kamata, 28, a resident of Moriyama-ku, Nagoya, was quoted as telling investigators. “Indoor shoes for school sexually stimulate me. I couldn’t throw away the shoes I obtained.”

In the specific case for which he was arrested, Kamata stole two pairs of shoes from a girl that were being dried on the premises of her home in Owariasahi, Aichi, in September last year.

Local police confiscated about 5,000 pairs of school indoor shoes for girls and boys from a warehouse he had rented in Moriyama-ku on Wednesday.

Police had received numerous complaints that indoor shoes have been stolen in Moriyama-ku and surrounding areas.

Investigators suspect that Kamata stole the shoes from shoe cabinets at schools and homes, and are trying to seek further charges against him.