EHIME (TR) – Shimane Prefectural Police have revealed that a man in his 70s was defrauded of more than 320 million yen in cash, gold bars and gold coins in an elaborate “romance and investment scam” orchestrated via social media.
According to the police, the victim, a resident of eastern Shimane Prefecture, handed over 21 gold bars, 16 gold coins and roughly 23 million yen in cash to the scammers, Yomiuri Shimbun (Apr. 2).
The ordeal began in early December of last year when the man clicked on an internet advertisement. This led him to exchange messages on the LINE app with a person claiming to be a woman named “Sato,” for whom he eventually developed romantic feelings.
Sato soon introduced the man to an “artificial intelligence-based investment system.” Trusting her advice, the victim transferred approximately 1 million yen into a designated bank account on January 21. Following the initial transfer, a fraudulent investment app falsely displayed that his funds were generating steady profits.
As a result, between that day and February 26, the man was defrauded of approximately 324.48 million yen in cash and gold in 10 separate transactions.
“Service fee”
The scam escalated when the suspect convinced the man that physical gold could be used to fund further investments. Believing the ruse, the victim met with another individual claiming to be a “representative” and handed over the gold bars.
Shortly after, the app updated his fabricated total assets to a staggering 3 billion yen. The scammers then demanded a “service fee” to cash out the supposed profits, prompting the man to hand over even more gold bars, gold coins, and cash.
The victim finally grew suspicious when he was entirely unable to withdraw his returns. He reported the matter to his local police station on March 2, which led to police launching an investigation.
Authorities are urging the public to remain vigilant: “If someone approaches you with a highly profitable investment story promising high dividends, please suspect a scam.”
