Latest news with #InternationalCrimeDivision
The Mainichi
a day ago
- The Mainichi
3 Myanmar nationals in Tokyo accused of killing compatriot with wine bottle
TOKYO -- Three Myanmar nationals in the Japanese capital have been served with fresh arrest warrants for allegedly killing a compatriot by striking him in the head with a wine bottle, the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD)'s International Crime Division announced Aug. 18. Police served new arrest warrants to Zaw Myo Htet, a 24-year-old resident of Shinjuku Ward, Naing Lin Oo, a 28-year-old resident of Toshima Ward, and Phyo Myat Min, a 20-year-old vocational school student living in Kita Ward, on suspicion of murder. The three men are accused of striking the head of Chit Paw, a 22-year-old vocational school student who lived in Shinjuku Ward, with a wine bottle on a Shinjuku street at around 4:05 a.m. on July 7. He died of acute subdural hematoma four days later. All three suspects have reportedly denied the allegations, claiming, "We did not hit him," and, "We did not intend to kill." According to the MPD, the three men had been drinking at a nearby restaurant for about three hours before the incident. It is believed that they got into an argument with a group of seven international students, including Chit Paw, which escalated into a physical altercation on a street near the establishment. The three suspects were previously arrested in July on suspicion of assaulting two other Myanmar students present at the scene but were released pending a prosecution decision.
The Mainichi
25-07-2025
- The Mainichi
Japanese woman suspected of requesting English exam score forgery 'wanted to work overseas'
TOKYO -- The International Crime Division of the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) on July 24 referred a 39-year-old woman to prosecutors on accusations she had requested a faked English language skills certificate. The woman, a company worker from the central Japan city of Kanazawa, is accused of violating the counterfeiting of private documents law after allegedly seeking a faked certificate showing a high achievement on the Test of English for International Communication (TOEIC) exam. She works for a large firm and has reportedly admitted to the allegations, saying that she wished to work overseas at some point. Two Chinese nationals, who are unemployed and live in Tokyo's Ota Ward, are alleged to have forged the certificate. The pair were previously charged with violating the Immigration Control and Refugee Recognition Act, and they were sent to prosecutors again for alleged document forgery. The home building of both defendants allegedly contained data for approximately 10,000 forged documents, including the credentials of doctors and building lot traders, and the police are investigating the case within a scope of systematic forgery. The woman allegedly conspired to forge one official certificate with a TOEIC score in the high 800s at both defendants' home building on April 7-8. The MPD has attached a "severe penalty" opinion for prosecution. According to the MPD, the woman had previously scored in the high 800s on the 990-point TOEIC, but when she took the test in Tokyo this March, her score was in the 600s. Shortly afterward, she found a Japanese-language website that offered a certificate forgery service and requested a counterfeit certificate. She reportedly paid a total of 160,000 yen (about $1,085) on April 4 and 5 to the forgers. Both defendants had been arrested and indicted on suspicion of forging residence cards for foreigners, which they are believed to have been instructed by another party to carry out. At least one counterfeit certificate found in a search of their home reportedly had the woman's name and photo printed on it. In addition, data on forged documents such as financial planner level 1 qualification certificates and student ID cards were also found. Many of the documents were in Chinese names, but there were also 400-500 documents in Japanese names.
The Mainichi
23-07-2025
- The Mainichi
Tokyo police reveal tiny earphones used in organized cheating on English test
TOKYO -- Police investigating organized cheating on an English proficiency test in Japan revealed on July 22 tiny earphones and an audio relay device that a Chinese test taker possessed. Police are continuing their investigation, suspecting that these items were provided by a Chinese company that facilitates cheating on exams. The Metropolitan Police Department (MPD)'s International Crime Division also disclosed an instructional video on how to use the device. The earphones and audio device were provided by a Chinese woman who was voluntarily questioned by police after allegedly attempting to receive answers remotely from another person at a Tokyo test site for the Test of English for International Communication, known commonly as TOEIC, on June 7. The earphone is a 3-millimeter metal sphere that fits inside the ear and transmits sound via bone conduction. It is invisible from the outside and is apparently removed with a stick-shaped magnet. The audio relay device was embedded in a pendant decorated with ornaments. The instructional video was found on the woman's smartphone and is believed to have been sent in advance by the company. It explains how to insert the earphone, connect the relay device to a smartphone and other steps. On the same day, the MPD served a fresh arrest warrant to Wang Likun, 27, a Chinese graduate student at Kyoto University, for allegedly taking the test under another person's name at a test site in Tokyo's Nerima Ward on March 1. Wang is believed to have played a role in providing correct answers to cheaters, and this is his fourth arrest warrant. He is reportedly remaining silent about the allegations. The MPD also revealed an about 7-centimeter stick-shaped miniature microphone seized from Wang. The item was apparently hidden inside a face mask. At a March TOEIC test in Nerima Ward, 14 Chinese men and women in their 20s or younger registered with the same address in the capital's Nakano Ward as Wang, and are suspected of attempting to cheat. (Japanese original by Kengo Suga, Tokyo City News Department)
Asahi Shimbun
28-06-2025
- Asahi Shimbun
Tokyo police pull out the stops to win trust of foreign residents
An officer from the International Crime Division explains Japan's traffic rules to a Croatian woman, far right, at the Thai Festival Tokyo held in the capital's Shibuya Ward on May 10. (Shun Yoshimura) Police in Tokyo are waging a charm offensive to stop foreign nationals falling victim to elaborate fraud scams as well as steer them on some of the dos and don'ts of living in Japan. Specifically, the Metropolitan Police Department realizes that many foreign nationals are not fluent in the language and often flummoxed by cultural and legal norms that are so different from what they are used to back home. And there is seemingly no end to non-Japanese residents caught up in crimes and traffic accidents. That is why the MPD has been making a determined effort to help foreign nationals live with less stress and encouraging them not to be fearful about contacting the police. During a national holiday in mid-May, officers from the International Crime Division (ICD) went with interpreters to talk to foreigners attending the Thai Festival Tokyo held at Yoyogi Park in Shibuya Ward. 'Do you have any difficulties living in Japan?' an officer asked. 'Stay alert, because fraud cases involving individuals claiming to be Chinese police officers are increasing.' The officers distributed fliers in Thai, Nepali, English and other languages to raise awareness on key points of living in Japan, such as: strengthened penalties for riding bicycles while drunk; methods employed by criminal groups to recruit workers for illegal part-time jobs; and the fact that compensation is routinely paid to victims of criminal offenses. The ICD has made a point in recent years to help foreign residents stay out of trouble. For example, it works with communities with a sizeable foreign presence to organize soccer games to raise awareness of the way things are done in Japan. The ICD also opened an exclusive Facebook page to explain traffic rules. FALLING PREY TO CRIME Numerous cases have emerged of foreign residents falling victim to crime or unwittingly becoming members of criminal groups after applying for shady part-time jobs. In March, a Chinese national in his 30s was swindled out of roughly 5 million yen ($34,700) in a new ruse. He received a phone call and was told in Chinese that his bank account had been used for money laundering and that he should consult the police. He contacted a man who claimed to be a Chinese police officer in the western Tokyo city of Fuchu and wired the funds in his account as directed to a designated account as so-called settlement money. The man who apparently posed as a police officer was later arrested on suspicion of fraud. He was also Chinese. The incident came hard on the heels of a similar scam. In January, he received a phone call from an individual who claimed to be a member of Chinese police. Speaking in Chinese, the caller demanded that he do as he was told. He apparently contacted the 'victim,' instructed him to wire the money, had him write a pledge of confidentiality and received a reward from the mastermind. An MPD officer told visitors at the festival venue there is no way to make easy money and that trading bank accounts and reselling mobile phones are criminal offenses. A student in her 20s who lives in Tokyo's Arakawa Ward arrived in Japan from Thailand in April. She didn't know that the emergency number is 110 in Japan until she listened to explanations from the police. Because she has difficulty understanding Japanese, she expressed her appreciation for the flier and explanations from the police in her native language. Toshiyuki Hashimoto, a university staff member from Atsugi, Kanagawa Prefecture, also received Thai, Korean and Chinese versions of the flier. He intends to distribute them to foreign students at his university. 'I never find such informative materials in multiple languages,' Hashimoto, 37, said. 'I plan to use them to help the foreign students in their daily lives.' An ICD representative said: 'We want to build a society where everyone can live comfortably, regardless of their nationality. We want to make them feel that Japanese police are approachable and can be trusted.'
