TOKYO (TR) – Tokyo Metropolitan Police have arrested two men for allegedly swindling a male tourist in a scam carried out last year in which he was supposed to have sex with an idol, reports NHK (Jan. 18).
In August, the man, a 23-year-old resident of Fukuoka Prefecture, was approached by Junichi Takahashi, 35, and one other man on a road in the Kabukicho red-light district of Shinjuku Ward. One of the suspects, claiming to be a manager of idols, told the victim that a girl was available “to play around.”
After paying 700,000 yen and selecting a girl, the man checked in to a designated hotel. However, when a girl never arrived he realized he had been swindled, according to the Shinjuku Police Station.
Takahashi, who has been accused of fraud, denies the allegations. “I do not recall [the matter],” the suspect was quoted by police. The other suspect admits to having pulled the same ruse on dozens of other occasions.
Other tourists have lodged complaints regarding being victimized in similar scams, police said.
