TOKYO (TR) – Tokyo Metropolitan Police have arrested a man for allegedly withdrawing money from the accounts of a 95-year-old woman while claiming to be a water heater contractor.
Such incidents targeting the elderly are on the rise nationwide, police said, reports TV Asahi (Dec. 10).
According to police, Yuto Arai, a 28-year-old resident of Yokohama City, had visited the home of a 95-year-old woman living in Tokyo multiple times since around April of this year. Each time, he claimed to be a water heater contractor.
After completing the replacement of her water heater, he is believed to have subsequently deceived the woman, falsely claiming he was there to collect an outstanding payment. He then stole her two cash cards.
Arai later used the cash cards to withdraw a total of roughly 2,555,000 yen from ATMs on 19 occasions.
Since multiple people visited the home at the time, police believe there were more perpetrators in the crime.
The incident came to light in August after the woman and her family contacted the police.
During questioning, Arai partially denied the charges. He said, “I knew that withdrawing money using my cash card was illegal, but I received the money for the repair work.”
Elderly as targets
Such scams are currently on the rise.
Last month, five men were arrested and indicted in Ichihara City, Chiba Prefecture for allegedly defrauding a man in his 80s of money for repair costs by claiming that his hot water pipes were clogged.
According to the Tokyo Metropolitan Consumer Affairs Center, up until five years ago, the number of consultations regarding water heater replacement problems was around 40 per year.
However, last year the figure exceeded 1,700, approximately three times the number from the previous year. Approximately 80 percent of those who consulted were elderly.
