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Ex-Keikyu Department Store employee suspected in ¥2 billion fraud

KANAGAWA (TR) – Kanagawa Prefectural Police have arrested a former employee of Keikyu Department Store Co. who is suspected of defrauding the company out of around 2 billion yen, reports TBS News (July 7).

Thus far, police have accused Masaichi Okada, 66, over the alleged misappropriation of 23.9 million yen from an account of the company on January 21, 2019.

At the time, Okada was employed at the Keikyu Kamiooka Store in Yokohama City’s Konan Ward.

In carrying out the swindle, he allegedly created a fake invoice for interior construction work at the store by a contractor under his management. He then sent the funds to a bank account he controlled.

Masaichi Okada (Twitter)

Upon his arrest on suspicion of fraud on Tuesday, Okada denied the allegations. ” I did not carry out fraud,” the suspect told police.

While employed at Keikyu Department Store, Okada was in a position to order construction work. He is believed to have made fraudulent orders on about 200 occasions, netting him a total of around 2 billion yen.

The matter emerged during an internal audit. In June 2019, Keikyu Department Store dismissed Okada. That December, the company lodged a complaint with police.