Around 20 people were injured at a luxury shopping complex in central Tokyo on Monday after a man sprayed a substance inside, police and fire department officials said.

Tokyo police spokesman Yusuke Koide said a man sprayed a substance at an ATM on the ground floor of the building, Ginza Six, while a local fire department official said "around 20 people were injured" after a report of a "smell".

The road in front of the mall in the touristy and upmarket shopping district was blocked off following the incident, and fire engines lined the street.

But shoppers continued to come and go from the building using side entrances.

Two people on stretchers were seen being put into an ambulance while firefighters and officials dressed in hazmat suits brought people from the mall into specialised trucks to examine them.

Broadcaster NHK said the injuries appeared to be light.

One 70-year-old woman who was at the mall told the broadcaster that her throat started "stinging and hurting" as she approached the ATM.

"Once I went into the ATM corner, my throat felt scratchy, almost numb." (AFP)


Edited by Aaron Tam