OSAKA (TR) — Police here have arrested a suspected top executive of a notorious Cambodian criminal conglomerate as he attempted to secure permanent residency in Japan, reports the Asahi Shimbun (June 22).
Hu Shi, a 44-year-old Cyprus national, was apprehended in Osaka on June 14 on suspicion of falsifying public records. He is accused of submitting a fraudulent change-of-address form in April, falsely claiming he had relocated to Tokyo’s Chuo Ward.
Upon his arrest, Hu reportedly told investigators he moved his registration “to obtain permanent residency in Japan.” However, he deflected responsibility for the forged documents, telling police, “I left it to my agent, so I don’t know the details.”
Hu vanished
Hu is believed to be a key player in the Prince Group, a massive syndicate targeted by U.S. sanctions for its alleged role in orchestrating international online investment fraud through Cambodian “phone farms.” Japanese authorities suspect Hu is among the 146 individuals and entities explicitly named in those sanctions.
While the syndicate’s chairman was previously captured in Cambodia and extradited to China, Hu had seemingly vanished. His whereabouts remained a mystery until Japanese investigators picked up his trail. Police tracked him to Osaka, where he was spotted on security camera footage, leading to his arrest after authorities scoured several luxury hotels.
Corporate records reveal that Hu serves as the representative director of a Tokyo-based trading company founded in April 2023. The company’s capital has suspiciously swelled six-fold, jumping from 8 million yen to 50 million yen.
London to Tokyo to Osaka
Meanwhile, Hu’s registered personal address bounced constantly. Initially listed as South London when the company was founded, his residency was moved across various Tokyo wards and Suita City in Osaka Prefecture, before finally landing on the Chuo Ward address that led to his arrest.
Authorities also arrested two Chinese nationals suspected of filing the fraudulent paperwork on Hu’s behalf.
Police have confiscated smartphones from all three suspects. Tokyo Metropolitan Police and other agencies are currently analyzing the devices as they work to unravel the full scope of the syndicate’s illicit activities within Japan.
