Latest news with #YukiWatanabe
Japan Times
2 days ago
- Japan Times
Senior 'JP Dragon' crime ring member jailed for 42 months
The Tokyo District Court on Tuesday sentenced a senior member of the "JP Dragon" crime ring based in the Philippines to three years and six months in prison for fraud. Tomohiro Koyama, 51, is believed to be the third-highest-ranking member of the ring comprising Japanese nationals. He is a former member of another crime group led by Yuki Watanabe, 41, whose members used the pseudonym "Luffy." Watanabe has been charged with robbery resulting in death. Koyama was detained by Philippine authorities and extradited to Japan in November 2024. Presiding Judge Yasushi Fuke said that Koyama's actions were "part of an organized and professional crime and very malicious." "He played an important role so that the whole organization could carry out crimes efficiently," the judge said, noting that Koyama managed ring members as a leader of a team tasked with making scam phone calls to victims. "It must be said that the criminal responsibility is heavy." Fuke deemed a prison sentence of three years and six months appropriate, citing Koyama's remorse and full compensation to the victim. Prosecutors had sought a five-year prison term. According to the indictment, Koyama conspired with Watanabe and others in April 2019 to steal eight bank cards from a fraud victim in her 50s in Tokyo and withdraw approximately ¥700,000.
Japan Times
23-07-2025
- Japan Times
Senior member of 'Luffy' crime ring gets 20 years in prison
The Tokyo District Court on Wednesday sentenced a senior member of a Philippines-based Japanese crime ring to 20 years in prison for his involvement in a nationwide robbery scheme. Tomonobu Kojima, 47, was the first of the four indicted members of the group, whose members went by the nickname "Luffy," to receive a court ruling. Kojima was indicted on charges of recruiting individuals involved in robbery cases from October 2022 to December 2022, including those in the city of Inagi, Tokyo, the capital's Nakano Ward and the city of Iwakuni in Yamaguchi Prefecture. He also allegedly swindled a total of about ¥54 million in 2019. During his trial, Kojima admitted to the charges, and public prosecutors sought a 23-year sentence. The prosecutors argued that Kojima recruited perpetrators through X, formerly Twitter, and agencies for illegal part-time jobs, and concluded that he played a significant role in executing robberies. They also claimed that Kojima served as second-in-command and safekeeper in special fraud cases, helping to maintain and expand the group's activities under leader Yuki Watanabe, 41. Meanwhile, the defense noted that Kojima's roles as second-in-command and safekeeper were exaggerated and that he was not privy to the details of robbery plans, and suggested that an 11-year sentence would be appropriate. The other three of the four indicted members, including Watanabe, have been charged with robbery resulting in death over a high-profile case in the Tokyo city of Komae. The dates for their first court hearings have yet to be decided.
Japan Times
15-07-2025
- Japan Times
23-year sentence sought for senior member of 'Luffy' crime ring
Public prosecutors on Tuesday sought a 23-year prison term for Tomonobu Kojima, a senior member of a Philippines-based Japanese crime ring that allegedly masterminded a series of robbery and fraud cases across wide areas of Japan. In their closing argument in a lay-judge trial at Tokyo District Court, the prosecutors said that the cases in which Kojima, 47, was involved by recruiting perpetrators served as the origin of a series of "tokuryu" crimes committed by loosely organized groups of anonymous members. "The cases have led to many copycat crimes, and the defendant should be punished severely," the prosecutors stressed. The defense said that 11 years in prison would be appropriate for Kojima. The court is scheduled to hand down a ruling on July 23. At the first hearing of his trial on July 1, Kojima, who belonged to the group whose members called themselves "Luffy," pleaded guilty to all charges that he faced, including aiding robberies resulting in injury and committing fraud. In their opening statement, prosecutors said that the defendant recruited perpetrators via X, formerly Twitter. They said he was also in charge of managing the group's criminal proceeds, playing an important role within the group next to Yuki Watanabe, 41, one of its leaders. The defense argued that, while Kojima was instructed by Watanabe, who had shouldered Kojima's debt arising from failed investment, to find perpetrators of planned robbery cases, he was not aware of the details of the plan and that his degree of involvement in the crimes was low. According to the indictment, the defendant introduced to the group between October and December 2022 perpetrators of robbery cases in Tokyo and Yamaguchi Prefecture. Kojima has also been charged with swindling some ¥54 million in cash. Watanabe and two other senior figures in the group have also been indicted on charges, including robbery resulting in death over a fatal assault on an elderly woman in a Tokyo suburb in January 2023. It remains to be seen when the first hearing of their trials will start.
Japan Times
04-07-2025
- Japan Times
Senior member of 'Luffy' crime ring pleads guilty at hearing
A senior member of a Philippines-based Japanese crime ring that allegedly masterminded a series of robbery and fraud cases across Japan pleaded guilty at the first hearing of his trial at the Tokyo District Court on Tuesday. Tomonobu Kojima, 47, who belonged to the group whose members called themselves "Luffy," said, "There is no mistake" regarding his charges of aiding robberies and committing fraud. Kojima, who became the first senior member of the group to stand trial, allegedly recruited perpetrators on X. The trial is drawing attention as it may uncover how tasks were assigned within the group and reveal the flow of criminal proceeds. A verdict will be handed down on July 23. Public prosecutors said in their opening statement that the defendant entered the Philippines around the summer of 2018, joining the fraud group organized by Yuki Watanabe, 41. Kojima, who managed crime proceeds, played an important role next to Watanabe, they said. Kojima allegedly recruited people on social media to carry out "shady" part-time jobs and gave the contact information of the perpetrators to other senior members of the group, the prosecutors said. According to the indictment, the defendant allegedly introduced to the group between October and December 2022 perpetrators of robbery cases including in Tokyo and Yamaguchi Prefecture. He also has been accused of swindling some ¥54 million in cash. Three other senior members of the group — Kiyoto Imamura, 41, and Toshiya Fujita, 41, in addition to Watanabe — have also been indicted. It remains to be seen when their trials will start.
