HOKKAIDO (TR) – A man in Sapporo City successfully thwarted a telephone scammer posing as a Tokyo Metropolitan Police detective after recording the bizarre conversation and turning the tables on the caller, reports TV Asahi (Aug. 28).
The incident began last week when the Sapporo resident received a call from an individual identifying himself as “Tanaka,” supposedly an investigator with the Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department’s Second Investigation Division.
This is a classic ploy in a tokushu sagi (specialized fraud) ruse, whereby a caller poses as an authority figure in scamming a victim.
Sensing something was amiss right away, the man hit the record button. “I immediately felt there was no way they would discuss such an important matter from a mobile phone, so I decided to record it,” he told reporters.
In the recorded audio, the fake detective went on the offensive. “Weren’t you complicit in money laundering for a group?” Tanaka asked. “There is a situation where you are suspected of being involved. A seized cash card of yours was used in a special fraud account.”
The victim played along, calmly stating he had no memory of making or handing over any such bank card.
The swindler then shifted tactics, claiming the case was actually under the jurisdiction of the Hyogo Prefectural Police. He asked the Sapporo man to travel all the way to western Japan for questioning.
When the man refused — logically pointing out that real police investigators would come to him — Tanaka smoothly replied, “That’s only when an arrest warrant is issued. Right now, it’s at a voluntary stage.”
Tanaka then told the man to hold the line while he “transferred” the call to Hyogo. A second scammer, identifying himself as “Yano from the Hyogo Prefectural Police,” picked up the phone.
Yano attempted to pressure the victim, stating, “We can’t just say ‘that’s fine’ if you can’t come… We are dealing with personal information, so I need to verify your identity.”
But the Sapporo man was ready. He flipped the interrogation on the fraudster, asking, “Can I ask you something too? What department are you in?”
When Yano vaguely replied that he was from the “Hyogo Prefectural Police Headquarters,” the man pressed further: “There are various departments, like Community Safety, right…?”
Realizing his cover was blown by the simple line of questioning, the fake officer abruptly hung up the phone.
Following the incident, the quick-thinking man offered a word of warning to the public: “Even if they drop the name of the police, it’s best to calm your mind and handle the situation with a cool head.”
