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Luck runs out for alleged Akita thief of prize cards

A Speed Kuji card from Circle K Sunkus
A Speed Kuji card from Circle K Sunkus

AKITA (TR) – An alleged lottery ticket thief ran out of luck after getting caught stealing prize cards worth 20,000 yen, according to a police statement on Wednesday announcing the arrest.

Akita Prefectural Police announced the arrest of Masaki Matsumura, 32, a doctor at Nakadori General Hospital, on suspicion of stealing Speed Kuji cards valued at 20,000 yen from a convenience store in Akita City in early April, the Sankei Shimbun reports (June 22).

Police said Matsumura was “shocked he was caught” and is denying the charges.

An human resources official at Nakadori General Hospital declined to comment, citing a lack of knowledge about the case.

Matsumura graduated from Kanazawa Medical University in 2011 and started handling gastrointestinal surgery at Nakadori General after a stint at hospitals in places like Tokyo and Saitama Prefecture.

Matsumura is currently listed on Nakadori General’s web site as a doctor under its gastroenterology division. A Facebook profile listing matching details says Matsumura was born in Yamaguchi Prefecture.

Some 70 percent of gastroenterology doctors in their 30s earn salaries of 10 million yen to 14 million yen, according to Recruit Medical Career.