TOKYO (TR) – Four men were arrested for running a horse race scam that robbed victims of a total of some 100 million yen, TV Asahi reports (Feb. 24).
Takashi Matsumoto, 45, Umeda Reo, 30, and two associates were arrested for allegedly calling a man in his 70s in Saitama Prefecture and saying he won horse race tickets before attempting to rob him of one million yen by claiming he had to pay nominal charges.
Tokyo Metropolitan Police said the alleged fraudsters told the man he “won three million yen worth of horse race tickets with the 10,000 yen he won during a lottery as part of a new membership campaign” and that an “information charge will be incurred to receive” the money.
The group is likely responsible for over 100 cases nationwide, amounting to damages of about 100 million yen.
Police are investigating the possibility that the fraud group consists of dozens of members.
