KYOTO (TR) – Police have arrested a 36-year-old construction worker accused of using a fake name to live large at a luxury hotel in Kyoto City before vanishing without paying a bill of over 250,000 yen, reports Kansai TV (May 4).
The suspect, a resident of Higashihiroshima City, Hiroshima Prefecture, was arrested on suspicion of fraud after allegedly scamming a high-end hotel in Shimogyo Ward between February 12 and 15 of this year.
According to police, the man provided a false name at check-in and initially booked a two-night stay, which he later extended by another two nights. During his four-night stay, he racked up approximately 157,000 yen in accommodation fees. Furthermore, he dined three times at the hotel’s exclusive Japanese and Chinese restaurants, charging an additional 95,000 yen to his room.
Taking advantage of the hotel’s post-pay system, the suspect simply walked out of the facility at the end of his stay without settling the tab. The hotel filed a damage report with the police on March 2 after it became clear the man was not returning.
Following an investigation, officers tracked the suspect down and arrested him on the morning of March 4 in the parking lot of a rental car shop in Higashihiroshima.
Upon his arrest, the suspect remained tight-lipped, neither admitting nor denying the allegations. “I don’t want to talk about the facts of my arrest,” he told investigators.
Police are currently investigating whether the man has been involved in similar dine-and-dash schemes at other hotels.
