Two men arrested in deadly shootings of Japanese nationals in Manila
The police said that one of the men arrested Monday is thought to have carried out the shooting. The other is said to be a tour guide.
Authorities said that the victims were a 53-year-old and a 42-year-old traveling in the Philippines and that someone may have hired the suspects to kill them.
The victims were heading to their hotel in a taxi around 10:40 p.m. Friday when a man approached them and instructed them to get out. They were shot dead as soon as they exited the taxi.
The man stole their luggage and fled with an accomplice on a motorcycle.
Since last October, there have been 21 robberies of Japanese nationals in the Philippines in which guns were involved. In March, a South Korean man was also killed in a robbery in Manila.
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Japan Times
12 hours ago
- Japan Times
Japanese man suspected of ordering double murder in Manila
A Japanese national living in Japan is suspected of ordering the killing of two fellow Japanese men in Manila, with a financial dispute being the likely motive, Philippine police said Tuesday. Authorities said the suspect allegedly hired two Filipino brothers to kill the two men, paying them an initial down payment of 10,000 Philippine pesos ($174) toward an agreed fee of 9 million pesos ($157,233). The brothers — Albert Manabat, 50, and his tour guide sibling, Abel Manabat, 62 — have been arrested over the murders. Investigators believe the Japanese suspect had traveled frequently to the Philippines and became acquainted with Abel, who served as his driver. Police allege he then asked the brothers to carry out the shooting. The victims were identified as Hideaki Satori, 53, a systems engineer from Fukuoka Prefecture, and Akinobu Nakayama, 41, from Shizuoka Prefecture. The two men, who often visited the Philippines for casino trips, had arrived on Aug. 14, a day before the attack. They were gunned down on the night of Aug. 15 shortly after stepping out of a taxi near their hotel. Their luggage was then stolen, and the perpetrators fled on a motorcycle. Philippine police formed a special task force to deal with the case and were able to locate the brothers based on CCTV footage, according to reports from The Manila Times. The brothers were referred to prosecutors Tuesday, and police are investigating the whereabouts of another Filipino accomplice. Prosecutors questioned the two the same day on charges including murder. A Japanese Foreign Ministry official in charge, who asked to remain anonymous in line with ministry regulations, said Wednesday the ministry would cooperate with local police in the Philippines and in Japan as investigators in both countries continue to look into the case. The Philippine Department of Tourism issued a statement on Tuesday condemning the incident in the 'strongest terms.' 'We extend our deepest sympathies to (the victims') families and loved ones,' the statement read. The department also called on local law enforcement agencies and the national police to pursue a 'swift and thorough' investigation. As a city with deep ties to Japan, Manila "stands in solidarity with the victims' families and remains resolute in ensuring that justice is served," Mayor Francisco Moreno Domagosa said in a statement.
Japan Times
15 hours ago
- Japan Times
Pachinko parlor employee arrested for alleged role in robbery
Police in Fukushima Prefecture arrested a 23-year-old pachinko parlor employee on Tuesday over a robbery case in which the employee allegedly opened the parlor's safe while pretending to be threatened to do so by a 19-year-old accomplice. Issa Manabe, 23, is suspected of conspiring with others to trespass into the parlor in the city of Aizuwakamatsu in the prefecture, then steal about ¥28 million ($190,000) in cash from the safe at around 1:50 a.m. on Aug. 12. Police have not disclosed whether the suspect admitted to the trespassing and theft charges. In the case, the 19-year-old who is a vocational school student and Ren Murayama, a 21-year-old part-time worker believed to have acted as the driver, had already been arrested on robbery charges. Manabe's involvement in the case came to light based on the two's statements and other circumstances. According to police sources, Manabe left the pachinko parlor with another employee after midnight. He then met up with the student, and the two went to the parlor, with Manabe pretending to be threatened with a gun-like object. The stolen cash is believed to have been transported by the student and Murayama to a station in Tokyo and handed to a collector in a restroom at the station. Police believe that they were directed by someone else involved in the case.
NHK
16 hours ago
- NHK
Japanese national allegedly masterminded killing of 2 Japanese men in Manila
Police in the Philippines say suspects detained over the fatal shooting of two Japanese men in Manila told investigators that they were hired by a Japanese national for a reward. The victims were shot dead immediately after getting out of a taxi in the capital on Friday last week. Local police have taken two Filipino brothers into custody. They are a 50-year-old suspected of carrying out the shooting and a 62-year-old, who is believed to have been in the taxi as a tour guide. At a news conference on Tuesday, police revealed that one of the suspects said he was offered a reward of 9 million Philippine pesos, or about 157,000 dollars, by the mastermind. They said the suspect, believed to have been working as a tour guide, had apparently served as a driver for the Japanese national during a visit to the Philippines. The mastermind is thought to be based in Japan. Police also said they are searching for another suspect who fled the scene. A lawyer for the two suspects said they are not connected to the crime and are innocent. The taxi driver who was believed to have driven the victims and one of the suspects told NHK that the suspect seemed to be looking for someone, and that a gunshot rang out as soon as the two men stepped out of the taxi.
