FUKUI (TR) – Police here have arrested a 52-year-old homeless man on suspicion of fraud after he allegedly acted as the “bagman” to collect 6 million yen in cash from a woman targeted in a fake investment scheme, reports the Sankei Shimbun (May 26).
Kazuyoshi Yoshikawa, an unemployed man with no fixed address, was taken into custody on Tuesday. Upon his arrest by the Fukui Police Station, Yoshikawa partially denied the charges, telling investigators, “I received a large sum of money, but I didn’t think it was money from a crime.”
The charges stem from an incident in July of last year. According to police, the fraud ring contacted a woman residing in Fukui City, tricking her into believing she would reap profits from a lucrative investment.
To secure the cash, the scammers fed her a lie, telling her, “Our representative will visit you directly to process the deposit in person.”
Serving as an ukeko (collector), Yoshikawa then allegedly showed up to collect the 6 million yen in cash from the unsuspecting victim.
However, the cash hand-off was only a fraction of the scam. Police revealed that the woman was defrauded out of a staggering 23.22 million yen in total, having transferred the remainder of her money into bank accounts designated by the fraudsters.
Authorities are continuing their investigation into Yoshikawa’s potential involvement in the remaining stolen funds and are working to track down the other members of the fraud ring.
