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Tokyo ring employed homeless in scalping of tickets for sumo, Takarazuka

Tetsuji Miyazawa
Tetsuji Miyazawa (TBS News)

TOKYO (TR) – Tokyo Metropolitan Police have arrested five persons, including a man and his mother, who utilized homeless persons in the scalping of tickets for sumo matches and other events, reports TBS News (Sept. 26).

Between February and April, Tetsuji Miyazawa, a 56-year-old resident of Sumida Ward, and his mother, 83-year-old Momoyo, and three other persons allegedly enlisted homeless persons to purchase 52 tickets for sumo matches and the Takarazuka Review, the lavish all-female performing troupe, for 334,000 yen from ticket shops in the capital.

The suspects then used online channels to resell the tickets, usually for high-demand events, for up to 17 times their face values.

One buyer of the tickets is quoted by TV Asahi (Sept. 26) as saying the compensation paid by the suspects was several thousand yen for the purchase of up to 20 tickets.

According to the Ikebukuro Police Station, all five suspects admit to the allegations.

Over an eight-year period beginning in 2009, the suspects are believed to have earned nearly 20 million yen from scalping tickets.