A TOTAL of seven Japanese nationals tagged as key figures of a notorious criminal fraud syndicate in Japan were arrested by the Bureau of Immigration (BI).
According to Immigration spokesperson Dana Sandoval, the gang leaders were apprehended by operatives from the BI’s fugitive search unit (FSU) on Wednesday in two separate operations in San Jose del Monte, Bulacan and in Ermita, Manila.
Five of them were arrested in a residential area along Quirino highway in Bulacan. The arrested were identified as Hiraki Ishikawa, 45; Tsubasa Amano, 30; Sasaki Ken, 37; Akira Sambonchiku, 26; and Naoto Matsumoto, 35.
The other two suspects, identified as Rintaro Yamane, 27 and Masato Morihiro, 37 were arrested by the FSU under Rendel Ryan Sy in a condominium unit along Adriatico St. in Ermita.
The group were identified by Japanese authorities to be members of the notorious ‘JP Dragon’ group, wanted in their home country for large-scale fraud.
The syndicate is implicated to be involved in a range of illegal activities, mostly fraud, targeting senior citizens in Japan. Their modus is to impersonate authorities to deceive victims into giving large sums of money.
Sy said the syndicate allegedly stole ATM cards and posed as law enforcers to harass and deceive their elder victims in surrendering bank cards and other banking information under the pretext of a police investigation.
According to Sy, a summary court in Fukuoka, Japan has issued arrest warrants against six of them last March 5 due to charges of theft that were filed against them.
Meanwhile, Matsumoto was found to be an overstaying alien.
