TOKYO (TR) – Tokyo Metropolitan Police have arrested three men for allegedly swindling victims out of roughly 80 million yen by claiming they could predict winning lottery numbers through fortunetelling, reports TBS News (July 2).
The suspects include Norito Hirasawa, a 50-year-old company executive from Shinjuku Ward, Shinichi Misawa, a 44-year-old company executive from Nakano Ward, and Hiroaki Miyata, a 49-year-old unemployed man from Shinjuku Ward.
The trio is accused of defrauding a woman in her 70s from Kumamoto Prefecture out of approximately 7.5 million yen over a period of several months.
According to police, the suspects lured the woman in by falsely promising, “You are guaranteed to win a massive lottery jackpot through our fortunetelling appraisal.”
Investigators revealed that Hirasawa and his accomplices sent mass spam emails posing as fortunetellers. The messages featured enticing subject lines such as, “We will pray for your luck to improve,” and “Incredible fortune is coming your way, so please receive my appraisal.”
Victims who replied were funneled to a fraudulent website where fictitious mystics operating under extravagant names like “Amane Fukuju” and “Holy Isis” preyed on their hopes. The fake fortune tellers sent messages reading, “We know the exact day and numbers for you to win the lottery,” and, “Your life of hardship is over.”
To receive these “appraisals,” victims were required to purchase site points. The Kumamoto victim was continuously drained of cash, transferring amounts ranging from a few thousand to tens of thousands of yen to designated bank accounts roughly 350 times. She never received any winning lottery numbers.
Hirasawa is believed to be the top figure of the ring. During a raid on his residence, investigators discovered massive bundles of 1,000-yen bills stashed in his shelves, seizing approximately 7.7 million yen in cash.
Police are continuing their investigation, believing the group systematically defrauded about 20 people across Tokyo and four other prefectures, raking in a total of 80 million yen using the identical modus operandi.
