TOKYO (TR) – Tokyo Metropolitan Police have arrested two organized crime members, including a top boss, for fraudulently opening bank accounts, reports the Sankei Shimbun (Feb. 1).
In the summer of 2010, Ryoji Konomi, the 54-year-old head of the Fukuhaku-kai, and fellow gangster Osamu Ibaraki, 45, withheld their gang affiliations in applying for accounts with an Internet bank.
Both suspects, who live in Fukuoka, deny the allegations.
As a part of the investigation, police raided the Fukuhaku-kai headquarters, which is located in Fukuoka’s Hakata Ward, two offices connected to the gang and a restaurant management business that is believed to serve as a front company.
According to officers from the Shinjuku Police Station, transactions of between one million yen and 10 million were regularly made within the accounts. It is believed that accounts were used to be handle money obtained through criminal activities.