The Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department arrested two female suspects, including the owner of a beauty salon, for making false phone calls claiming to receive medical reimbursements and stealing cash cards from elderly women to withdraw cash. The Metropolitan Police Department is investigating in detail whether they were recruiting fraudulent groups, mainly women, so as not to alarming the victims.
Two people were arrested: Sayumi Kanechi, 37, a beauty salon owner in Tokyo's Nakano Ward, and Asuka Mori, 33, of unknown occupation in Saitama City.
According to the Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department, the two men are suspected of fraud and theft by making false phone calls to an 2-year-old woman living in Tokyo's Shinagawa Ward in January posing as bank employees, claiming that she can receive a refund for medical expenses and need to keep her cash card, stealing her cash card, and withdrawing approximately 2,1 yen at an ATM.
The Metropolitan Police Department has not confirmed the identity of the two men.
The two men are believed to be "callers" on fraudulent phone calls and "dumplings" who withdraw cash, and among them, Kanechi also played a role in soliciting members of the fraudulent group, and received messages from the supervisor on his mobile phone, such as "Please give priority to girls."
In this group, two suspects, a woman in her 80s, have been arrested for involvement in special fraud cases, and the Metropolitan Police Department is investigating in detail because it believes that they were recruiting mainly women so as not to alarming the victims.