Judge says 2 British men can be extradited over Harry Winston heist in Tokyo
LONDON (TR) – A court here last week said that two British nationals can be extradited over a smash-and-grab robbery at a Harry Winston boutique in Tokyo one decade ago, reports the BBC (May 16).
On May 16, chief magistrate Judge Goldspring rejected the challenges by Kaine Wright, 28, and Joe Chappell, 38, against extradition. The home secretary will now decide whether they will be sent to Japan.
On November 20, 2015, Wright and Chappell and a third man allegedly broke into the high-end Omotesando Hills store, smashed display cases with a crowbar and fled with 46 items — including luxury watches, rings and jewelry.
The value of the stolen items totals around 106 million yen, Tokyo Metropolitan Police said previously.
During the incident, the suspects also assaulted a 47-year-old male security guard who suffered minor injuries. Afterward, the suspects fled the scene and subsequently left Japan, according to police.
In 2017, the suspects were placed on a wanted list with Interpol on suspicion of robbery resulting in injury.
Since Japan and the U.K. do not have a mutual extradition treaty the case would be the first time for Japan to receive a suspect without such a treaty in place.
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
Chiba executive suspected of scalping tickets for MLB opening series
TOKYO (TR) – Tokyo Metropolitan Police have arrested a 54-year-old company president for illegally reselling tickets for Major League Baseball's opening two-game series and other games at Tokyo Dome earlier this year, reports NHK (May 27). According to police, Mamoru Kokubo illegally resold 12 tickets for the opening series between the Los Angeles Dodgers and Chicago Cubs and exhibition games involving the Yomiuri Giants and Hanshin Tigers in March this year. The tickets have a face value of 430,000 yen but Kokubo, a resident of Funabashi City, Chiba Prefecture, collected 7.89 million yen in the resale, police said. Upon his arrest on suspicion of violating the Ticket Resale Prohibition Act, Kokubo admitted to the allegations. 'After buying professional baseball tickets on a resale site several times, I thought I could make some extra cash. I started using the site to resell tickets,' the suspect said. 'I used the money to finance the company I run.' Mamoru Kokubo (X) Non-existent company All told, Kokubo obtained a total of 72 tickets by applying under the names of multiple companies and relatives for corporate slots in the so-called '6-game pack,' which included tickets for the two opening series games and four exhibition games. He put 62 of these tickets up for resale on a resale site, reselling them for up to 2 million yen each, making a profit of 21.8 million yen. At the time, tickets for the opening series between the Dodgers and Cubs were being bought and sold on resale sites for several times the retail price. Some tickets were being sold for anything from several hundred thousand yen to as much as 2 million yen each. According to the official website, the cheapest 'Reserved Seat A' for the '6-game pack' was on sale for 115,500 yen, while the most expensive was the 'Diamond Box' at 679,000 yen. To apply, users entered the company's name, address, name of person in charge, and contact information on the site. However, according to the Metropolitan Police Department, they are not required to submit documents or otherwise verify the existence of the company. Police suspect that Kokubo purchased tickets under the name of a non-existent company. The Los Angeles Dodgers and Chicago Cubs played two games at Tokyo Dome in March 'Dark side is expanding' The Ticket Resale Prohibition Act came into effect in June 2019 as people who really wanted tickets had difficulty obtaining them due to unfair high-price resales by businesses and individuals. These scalpers bought up tickets and sold them on resale and auction sites at prices far above the list price. Violators are subject to one-year in prison or a fine of up to 1 million yen, or both. However, this law only applies to cases where the act is carried out 'as a business' with the intention of continuing repeatedly, so the current situation is that crackdowns are not keeping up with the spread of unfair high-price resales on resale sites. Kensaku Fukui is an attorney familiar with the issue of resale of tickets. He tells NHK, 'Online resales are very convenient, but their dark side is also expanding. It is becoming common to see listings at prices several times or even dozens of times the retail price, and ordinary people are no longer able to purchase them at the normal price. There is growing anger against hoarding and high-priced resales.' According to Fukui, resale sites allow listings anonymously. In many cases, they do not respond to requests for disclosure of information about the resellers. 'Many resale sites are structured so that the higher the resale price, the higher the commission they receive, and they are making considerable profits,' Fukui adds. 'They may be held responsible for their complicity in illegal listings. At the very least, they are being held socially responsible.'
Tokyo Reported
10 hours ago
- Tokyo Reported
Suspected drug trafficker found with cocaine, meth, marijuana in Saitama
TOKYO (TR) – Tokyo Metropolitan Police have arrested a 34-year-old man for allegedly possessing illegal drugs with the intent to sell in Saitama Prefecture last month, reports the Sankei Shimbun (May 29). At around 10:35 a.m. on April 1, Tomohiro Goto allegedly possessing 68 grams of kakuseizai (methamphetamine), 916 grams of marijuana, 229 grams of cocaine and 50 grams of MDMA, or Ecstasy, inside a vehicle parked on a street in Hanno City. The contraband has a street value of 14.5 million yen, the Machida Police Station said. Tomohiro Goto (X) Upon his arrest on suspicion of violating the Stimulants Control Act and the Narcotics Control Act over possession of profit, Goto admitted to the charges. 'I was making a profit by trafficking illegal drugs,' he said. The arrest is not the first for Goto. He was arrested twice in April and May on suspicion of unlawful arrest and confinement, assault and other offenses. According to police, he assaulted and confined a man and his acquaintance with whom he was having financial problems in February. When his car was searched as a part of that investigation in April, the large quantities of meth and the other drugs were found.
Japan Today
16 hours ago
- Japan Today
Comedian Russell Brand denies rape and sex assault charges in UK court
British actor and comedian Russell Brand, who has been charged with rape and multiple counts of sex assault, appears at Southwark Crown Court, in London, Britain, May 30, 2025. REUTERS/Isabel Infantes British actor and comedian Russell Brand pleaded not guilty in a London court on Friday to charges of rape and sexual assault relating to four women more than two decades ago. Brand, once one of Britain's most high-profile broadcasters and former husband of U.S. pop singer Katy Perry, appeared at Southwark Crown Court and denied all five criminal charges. The 49-year-old has consistently denied having non-consensual sex since allegations were first aired two years ago. British prosecutors announced in April that Brand had been charged with two counts of rape, one count of indecent assault, and two counts of sexual assault against four women between 1999 and 2005. Brand, who previously gave his address as being in England but also lives in the U.S., is due to stand trial in June 2026. He spoke only to confirm his name and enter his five not guilty pleas, before leaving the court with his lawyer and some companions. PREVIOUS DENIAL After the charges were first announced, Brand said in a video posted on social media that in his younger days, before getting married and having children, he had been a fool and a sex addict but "what I never was, was a rapist". In the 2000s, Brand was a regular on British screens, known for his flamboyant style and appearance. He worked for the BBC and starred in a number of films including "Get Him to the Greek" before marrying Perry in 2010. They divorced 14 months later. By the early 2020s, he had faded from mainstream culture, appearing primarily on his internet channel where he airs his views on U.S. politics and free speech. In September 2023, the Sunday Times and Channel 4 TV's "Dispatches" show reported allegations of sex offenses against him. Police began investigating some weeks later. Brand, who said last year he had become a Christian, rejected those accusations. © Thomson Reuters 2025.
