TOKYO (TR) – Since relaxed entry requirements were put in place following the coronavirus pandemic, wealthy Chinese toting shopping bags are a common site throughout the capital and beyond.
But, cautions weekly tabloid Shukan Bunshun (Sep. 12), thieves lurk among them.
On August 27, Tokyo Metropolitan Police arrested two Chinese women Yi Xiaofeng and Hu Huiling, both 37, who are believed to be members of the international Chinese theft group known as “Pink Panda.”
A reporter covering the Tokyo police beat tells the magainze, “The pair is suspected of stealing six pearl pendants with a total value of approximately 1.86 million yen at the International Jewelry Tokyo show at Tokyo Big Sight on January 17.”
Targeting shops in Japan and Europe
The two suspects were captured in security camera footage, but the police were unable to arrest them immediately.
“After all, the two entered the country the day before, and left the day after the theft, so their net stay was three days,” the same reporter says. “However, they entered the country again at 5 a.m. on August 27, which led to their arrest. It is known that rings and necklaces worth nearly 10 million yen were also stolen from that same jewelry exhibition, and investigators believe that [these thefts] were also the work of these two.”
The Pink Panda gang, comprised of Chinese nationals, consists of more than 100 men and women from Hunan Province in China. It is known for repeatedly targeting shops in Japan and Europe. Members of the group typically steal valuable pieces of jewelry after distracting staff members.
An investigator explains, “What’s unique about the Pink Panda gang is that they don’t target individual stores, but rather events such as jewelry exhibitions where many stores are set up. Their typical modus operandi is to visit in large groups posing as customers, pretend to look at the products, and then replace them with pre-prepared counterfeits. They entered the country just before the incident and left immediately after, so it was difficult to apprehend them.”
“Security in Japan is lax”
Other Pink Panda members have been confirmed to have stolen jewelry in Japan in the past.
In May 2018, a dozen members attended an international jewelry exhibition in Kobe City. Hyogo Prefectural Police, having received information in advance, staked out the event and arrested two Chinese women on the spot for stealing rings and necklaces. One of them was reported to have testified at trial that “security in Japan is lax.”
“The two arrested this time came to Japan the day before the opening of another international jewelry exhibition at the same Tokyo Big Sight, as they did in January this year,” the aforementioned investigator continues. “They probably thought that they had not been identified as suspects and were planning to commit another crime. The Japanese police are not being taken seriously.”
