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Yakuza suspected of attempting to blackmail elderly man in Kabukicho
Yakuza suspected of attempting to blackmail elderly man in Kabukicho
TOKYO (TR) – Tokyo Metropolitan Police have arrested a member of a criminal syndicate over the alleged attempted blackmail of an elderly man in the Kabukicho red-light district, reports the Sankei Shimbun (June 27).
At around 9:00 p.m. on February 28, Osamu Saito, a 58-year-old senior member in the Kyokuto-kai, allegedly struck the man, aged in his 80s, in the chest on a street in Kabukicho.
'Give me back 5.94 million yen,' Saito reportedly said. 'Don't mess with me.'
Upon his arrest on suspicion of attempted blackmail, Saito declined to comment. 'There's no doubt that I met the male victim on the streets of Kabukicho, but I'll think about why we met and talk about it later,' he said.
According to police, the man borrowed a total of 5.6 million yen from Saito at a monthly interest rate of 20 percent in 2021 and April 2022 at the request of an acquaintance.
Further, he became a guarantor for the acquaintance who owed Saito 30 million yen in October 2023.
When repayments were in arrears, Saito unilaterally set higher interest repayment amounts, saying it was a 'penalty.' The man repaid a total of more than 24 million yen in over 90 installments between May 2023 and February 2025, police said.
Earlier this year, the suspect forced him to draw up a I.O.U. that read, 'Payment due March 6, 2025.' The man consulted with police on March 11.
