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The Mainichi
24-05-2025
- The Mainichi
Nagoya teen arrested for allegedly making scam calls from base in Myanmar
NAGOYA -- A high school student suspected of making scam phone calls from Myanmar as part of a fraud ring targeting people in Japan has been arrested, Aichi Prefectural Police announced May 24. The 16-year-old from Nagoya's Mizuho Ward had been taken into protective custody by Thai authorities in February after he called his family for help. He returned to Japan where he was subject to voluntary questioning, but went missing on May 19. Prefectural police say they found and arrested him in Saitama Prefecture four days later. Aichi police have twice arrested two other men -- Shoki Ishikawa, 32, and Tomonari Yachi, 22 -- who were at the same scam center in Myanmar allegedly alongside the 16-year-old. The 16-year-old is specifically accused of teaming up with Ishikawa and others to pose as different people including a police officer to call a 46-year-old man from Suzuka, Mie Prefecture, on Jan. 14 while the latter was staying in the United States. The suspect allegedly falsely told the victim that his account had been used in crimes, making him remit 9.9 million yen (approx. $69,400) in cash. Police have not revealed whether the 16-year-old has admitted to the allegations. The student apparently entered Myanmar after a man he came to know over the internet in November last year told him that he "can learn programs abroad." The 16-year-old is believed to have been engaged in fraud by repeatedly making deceptive phone calls alongside eight or so other Japanese nationals, and received rewards for success.
24-05-2025
Japan Police Arrest 16-Yr-Old from Myanmar Fraud Ring
News from Japan Society May 24, 2025 14:18 (JST) Nagoya, May 24 (Jiji Press)--Japanese police have arrested a 16-year-old for allegedly making scam calls as a member of a Myanmar-based fraud ring, it was learned Saturday. According to the Aichi prefectural police in central Japan, the suspect is a high school student in the prefectural capital of Nagoya who returned to Japan after being taken into custody by Thai authorities. After the minor did not respond to a voluntary police questioning scheduled for Monday and his whereabouts became unknown, the Aichi police tracked the suspect and found him Friday in Saitama Prefecture, north of Tokyo. They launched a compulsory investigation due to concerns that he might flee. The boy allegedly conspired with suspects Shoki Ishikawa, 32, and Tomonari Yachi, 22, on Jan. 14 to defraud a man from Mie Prefecture, central Japan, who was on a business trip to the U.S. state of Oregon. The three suspects are believed to have fraudulently obtained 9.9 million yen from the victim by making him transfer the money through a call, pretended to be from the Aichi police, to his mobile phone, saying that his bank account was being used for crime. [Copyright The Jiji Press, Ltd.] Jiji Press
The Star
24-04-2025
- The Star
Two Japanese men arrested over Myanmar-based scam operations; allegedly forced to impersonate police, others to fool victims
Shoki Ishikawa (left) and Tomonari Yachi after arriving at Haneda Airport from Thailand on Wednesday (April 23, 2025) afternoon. - Photo: The Yomiuri Shimbun TOKYO: Two Japanese men allegedly involved in international scam operations conducted from Myanmar were arrested Wednesday (April 23) after being flown back to Japan. The men had been detained by Thai police in March on suspicion of being involved in phone scams, and were arrested by the Aichi prefectural police onboard their flight to Haneda Airport in Tokyo. This represents the first time for Japanese police to identify a case involving scams based in the border region of eastern Myanmar. The men are believed to have been recruited through social media to do 'dark part-time jobs,' which often involve criminal activity. The police will work closely with Thai authorities to investigate whether other Japanese have been involved in the scams in neighboring Myanmar. The arrested men were Shoki Ishikawa, 32, and Tomonari Yachi, 22. Both are unemployed and had no fixed address. According to the police, the men were part of a scam ring that called the smartphone of a 46-year-old company employee from Suzuka, Mie Prefecture, while he was on a business trip in the United States on Jan 14. A group member impersonated a police officer and falsely told the victim that an arrest warrant had been issued because he was suspected of involvement in money laundering. He 'needed to pay cash to clear up these suspicions,' the man was told. The scam group allegedly duped the victim into transferring ¥9.9 million to a bank account. According to investigative sources, the two men flew to Bangkok from Narita Airport and Chubu Centrair International Airport in December. They then travelled by land to a hub for fraud operations near Myawaddy in eastern Myanmar. The men reportedly told acquaintances they had applied for 'lucrative part-time work' through the highly secure and confidential messaging app Telegram. The Aichi police believe the men applied for dark part-time jobs. A 16-year-old high school student from Aichi Prefecture taken into custody in Thailand in February had also traveled to the same scam base. The student has since returned to Japan, and his answers to police questioning helped corroborate the men's involvement in the case. Such fraud groups appear to be cleverly recruiting people to conduct their scams and luring them to bases overseas. In November 2024, the high school student acquired a passport after a man he interacted with on Telegram suggested he 'could learn programming' overseas. The student flew to Thailand in December. After first moving by road under the guidance of the fraud group, the student crossed into Myanmar by taking a boat over a river near the border. He was reportedly taken to a building ringed by barbed wire. About 10 Japanese, including the student and the two men, are believed to have been at the scam hub. The Aichi police believe the group's leaders set quotas for the three and forced them to conduct phone scams in which they impersonated police officers and other figures. In recent years, overseas scam hubs whose operations target people in Japan have been located mostly in nations such as the Philippines, Thailand and Cambodia. The National Police Agency has dispatched senior investigators to various countries in Southeast Asia and is working closely with authorities in those nations to share information about the fraud bases and to facilitate the extradition of suspects. Members of criminal organisations reportedly travel back and forth among these countries from their bases in Thailand. On April 9, the agency agreed with senior Thai police officials it invited to Japan that police authorities from both nations would strengthen their cooperation on this issue. - The Yomiuri Shimbun
Yomiuri Shimbun
24-04-2025
- Yomiuri Shimbun
2 Japanese Men Arrested Over Myanmar-Based Scam Operations; Allegedly Forced to Impersonate Police, Others to Fool Victims
Yomiuri Shimbun photos Shoki Ishikawa, left, and Tomonari Yachi after arriving at Haneda Airport from Thailand on Wednesday afternoon Two Japanese men allegedly involved in international scam operations conducted from Myanmar were arrested Wednesday after being flown back to Japan. The men had been detained by Thai police in March on suspicion of being involved in phone scams, and were arrested by the Aichi prefectural police onboard their flight to Haneda Airport in Tokyo. This represents the first time for Japanese police to identify a case involving scams based in the border region of eastern Myanmar. The men are believed to have been recruited through social media to do 'dark part-time jobs,' which often involve criminal activity**. The police will work closely with Thai authorities to investigate whether other Japanese have been involved in the scams in neighboring Myanmar. The arrested men were Shoki Ishikawa, 32, and Tomonari Yachi, 22. Both are unemployed and had no fixed address. According to the police, the men were part of a scam ring that called the smartphone of a 46-year-old company employee from Suzuka, Mie Prefecture, while he was on a business trip in the United States on Jan. 14. A group member impersonated a police officer and falsely told the victim that an arrest warrant had been issued because he was suspected of involvement in money laundering. He 'needed to pay cash to clear up these suspicions,' the man was told. The scam group allegedly duped the victim into transferring ¥9.9 million to a bank account. According to investigative sources, the two men flew to Bangkok from Narita Airport and Chubu Centrair International Airport in December. They then traveled by land to a hub for fraud operations near Myawaddy in eastern Myanmar. The men reportedly told acquaintances they had applied for 'lucrative part-time work' through the highly secure and confidential messaging app Telegram. The Aichi police believe the men applied for dark part-time jobs. A 16-year-old high school student from Aichi Prefecture taken into custody in Thailand in February had also traveled to the same scam base. The student has since returned to Japan, and his answers to police questioning helped corroborate the men's involvement in the case. Such fraud groups appear to be cleverly recruiting people to conduct their scams and luring them to bases overseas. In November 2024, the high school student acquired a passport after a man he interacted with on Telegram suggested he 'could learn programming' overseas. The student flew to Thailand in December. After first moving by road under the guidance of the fraud group, the student crossed into Myanmar by crossing a river near the border by boat. He was reportedly taken to a building ringed by barbed wire. About 10 Japanese, including the student and the two men, are believed to have been at the scam hub. The Aichi police believe the group's leaders set quotas for the three and forced them to conduct phone scams in which they impersonated police officers and other figures. In recent years, overseas scam hubs whose operations target people in Japan have been located mostly in nations such as the Philippines, Thailand and Cambodia. The National Police Agency has dispatched senior investigators to various countries in Southeast Asia and is working closely with authorities in those nations to share information about the fraud bases and to facilitate the extradition of suspects. Members of criminal organizations reportedly travel back and forth among these countries from their bases in Thailand. On April 9, the agency agreed with senior Thai police officials it invited to Japan that police authorities from both nations would strengthen their cooperation on this issue.
