Tokyo cops nab man suspected in 'itâ€™s me' scams

Jun 21, 2017 | News On Japan

Jun 21, 2017 (tokyoreporter.com) - Tokyo Metropolitan Police have arrested a member of a fraud ring suspected in the swindling of nearly 100 million yen by posing as relatives of victims, reports TBS News

In November, Hisato Mio, a 24-year-old resident of Okinawa Prefecture, is alleged to have fraudulently obtained 1 million yen in cash and two bank cards from a woman, aged in her 80s, living in Setagawa Ward. The cards were used to withdraw an additional 500,000 yen from her accounts via a convenience store ATM.

In a scam known as ore ore sagi, or "it's me fraud," the cash and cards were obtained after the woman was told by a person pretending to be her grandson on the telephone that he had lost a bag containing a bank check at a train station toilet and needed money.

Mio, who has been charged with fraud, denies the allegations, according to the Nerima Police Station.

The suspect is believed to be a member of a fraud ring that has swindled about 20 persons, primarily living in the metropolis, out of about 90 million yen since last year, according to Nippon News Network (June 20).

After February, Mio returned to Okinawa, where he was apprehended by police on Monday.

Source: ANNnewsCH

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