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Tokyo cops nab members of notorious extortion ring targeting men in Harajuku

Ryota Watanabe
Ryota Watanabe (Twitter)

TOKYO (TR) – Tokyo Metropolitan Police have arrested two persons who are believed to be members of a notorious extortion ring that targets men by making false claims in connection with the taking of illicit photographs, reports Nippon News Network (June 6).

According to police, the suspects are Ryota Watanabe, 28, and Korean national Jin Ho-jun, also 28, both of whom have been accused of attempted blackmail.

In May, the suspects played various roles in accusing a man of taking tosatsu, or voyeur, photographs of the lower body of a woman on a road in Shibuya Ward, near JR Harajuku Station.

In carrying out the ruse, Watanabe approached the victim, falsely saying, “That’s my girlfriend.” The victim was then ordered to pay 1 million yen as an out-of-court settlement.

According to a previous report, police believe that the suspects have committed the same crime repeatedly, with the victims being directed to consumer-finance companies to pay the demanded amounts. Police arrested two other suspected members of the ring in a similar case last month.

The ring has developed a reputation, being known by law enforcement as the “Black Tosatsu Hunters.”