Money laundering group suspected of handling ¥5.4 billion in proceeds from fraud ring
TOKYO (TR) – Tokyo Metropolitan Police have arrested six members of a money laundering group that are suspected of handling proceeds from a fraud ring and concealing them, reports NHK (June 19).
According to police, Karima Fukazawa, a 30-year-old resident of Koto Ward, Daiki Muroi, a 32-year-old resident of Sumida Ward, and four others are suspected of laundering more than 5 billion yen in criminal proceeds from the fraud ring.
Thus far, police have accused the suspects of transferring approximately 42 million yen, including funds obtained by eight fraud victims last year, to other accounts and hiding them. Karima Fukazawa, left, and Daiki Muroi (X)
Police did not reveal whether the suspects admit to violating the Organized Crime Punishment Act.
Accounts managed by the suspects contained approximately 5.4 billion yen. These funds are believed to have been defrauded by the fraud ring from victims across the country. Police believe that the suspects laundered the criminal proceeds at the request of the fraud ring.
The investigation is continuing on the suspicion that the group exchanged large amounts of the funds for cryptocurrencies and then rerouted them back to the fraud group via overseas exchanges.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Tokyo Reported
10 hours ago
- Tokyo Reported
Corpse of Russian woman found in Osaka residence
OSAKA（TR) – Osaka Prefectural Police launched a murder investigation after the corpse of a Russian woman was found in her residence in Osaka City's Naniwa Ward on Saturday, reports NHK (June 28). At around 10:00 p.m., the Naniwa Police Station received a report about a woman collapsed and coughing up blood in her residence on the 8th floor an apartment building in Shimodera. Emergency personnel arriving at the residence found Elena Ito, 50, collapsed face-down on the bed. She was confirmed dead at the scene. Due to marks on her face that looked like she had been punched, police are investigating the case as murder. Elena Ito was found dead in her apartment in Naniwa Ward on Saturday (X) According to police, Ito's husband, who lives separately from her in another location in Osaka City, visited the residence just before 10:00 p.m. that day to check on her safety after he had not been able to contact her for several days. Upon entry, he found Ito collapsed. He then asked a Japanese male acquaintance to report the incident. At the time of the discovery, the front door was locked. The husband said that he opened the locked door himself. There were no signs that the apartment had been ransacked, police said. Police will conduct an autopsy to determine the cause of death. The building is located about 300 meters west of Shitennoji-mae Yuhigaoka Station on the Osaka Metro Tanimachi Line.
Tokyo Reported
16 hours ago
- Tokyo Reported
Yakuza suspected of attempting to blackmail elderly man in Kabukicho
Yakuza suspected of attempting to blackmail elderly man in Kabukicho TOKYO (TR) – Tokyo Metropolitan Police have arrested a member of a criminal syndicate over the alleged attempted blackmail of an elderly man in the Kabukicho red-light district, reports the Sankei Shimbun (June 27). At around 9:00 p.m. on February 28, Osamu Saito, a 58-year-old senior member in the Kyokuto-kai, allegedly struck the man, aged in his 80s, in the chest on a street in Kabukicho. 'Give me back 5.94 million yen,' Saito reportedly said. 'Don't mess with me.' Upon his arrest on suspicion of attempted blackmail, Saito declined to comment. 'There's no doubt that I met the male victim on the streets of Kabukicho, but I'll think about why we met and talk about it later,' he said. According to police, the man borrowed a total of 5.6 million yen from Saito at a monthly interest rate of 20 percent in 2021 and April 2022 at the request of an acquaintance. Further, he became a guarantor for the acquaintance who owed Saito 30 million yen in October 2023. When repayments were in arrears, Saito unilaterally set higher interest repayment amounts, saying it was a 'penalty.' The man repaid a total of more than 24 million yen in over 90 installments between May 2023 and February 2025, police said. Earlier this year, the suspect forced him to draw up a I.O.U. that read, 'Payment due March 6, 2025.' The man consulted with police on March 11.
Tokyo Reported
17 hours ago
- Tokyo Reported
Broadcast of passed-out livestreamer leads police to yakuza theft ring
KANAGAWA (TR) – In October 2023, a male livestreamer fell asleep on a street in Yokohama City during a broadcast. Several thieves then swiped his smartphone and other items. Unbeknownst to them, the broadcast was still going when they fled the scene, ill-gotten gains in hand. Fast forward a year and a half. Kanagawa Prefectural Police this week announced the arrest of the 56-year-old boss of a criminal syndicate and three accomplices who are believed to have repeatedly worked with a ring that targeted drunk persons passed out in entertainment districts in Yokohama for thefts, reports the Asahi Shimbun (June 25). In one case, the four suspects, including Yoshifumi Shinkai, an executive in the Kodo-kai, are suspected working together to purchase necklaces and other items — worth approximately 1.84 million yen — with illegally obtained credit cards in other people's names on June 30 last year. The suspects used three stores, including pawnshops in Yokohama and Kawasaki cities, to make the purchases. Upon his arrest on suspicion of violating the Organized Crime Punishment Act, Shinkai declined to comment. Yoshifumi Shinkai (X) 'Fishermen' The Kodo-kai is an affiliate gang of the Yamaguchi-gumi, Japan's largest syndicate. Shinkai, the leader of the theft ring, lives in Yokohama's Naka Ward. The arrest is at least his second. In carrying out the crimes, the four suspects referred to drunk people sleeping on the street as ' maguro ' (tuna) and those who steal money and valuables from them as 'tuna fishermen.' 'Disposal agents' bought the cards and other items stolen by the 'fishermen' and use them illegally or sold them. In the case from last year, the card was one of the belongings stolen from a male corporate employee, 58, who was drunk and sleeping in a park in Naka Ward, Yokohama on June 29. Shinkai and his accomplices bought the victim's wallet, cards, smartphone and other items for a total of 30,000 yen from thieves, police said. As a part of that investigation, police found credit cards and other items belonging to 456 people in the suspects' homes and in the possession of other parties. Police are investigating whether the four were involved in repeated crimes as a group. It is believed that Shinkai managed and distributed the money gained from sales of the stolen items. The existence of the ring emerged following an investigation into the theft from the aforementioned livestreamer in 2023. After the thieves fled the scene, they reported their success to a higher-up, all of which was captured on the livestream. In February of last year, police arrested three men on suspicion of theft as the 'tuna fishermen' in the crime. The group led by Shinkai emerged from the statements from the suspects.
