Osaka: Police find manual detailing how to rip-off customers with claw crane machines

Dec 25, 2017 | News On Japan

Dec 25, 2017 (tokyoreporter.com) - As a part of the investigation into the rigging of arcade games, Osaka Prefectural Police have discovered a manual used by employees that detailed how to ensure that customers never won prizes, reports TBS News

On Saturday, police found that two of five game centers managed by Amusement Trust, both located in the Minami entertainment area, had claw crane machines - whereby a player directs attempts to grab a prize with a mechanical arm - rigged such that winning is impossible.

Six employees, who were arrested on suspicion of fraud, said that Takeshi Odaira, the 33-year-old president of the company, taught them how to rig the games. However, the president, who was sent to prosecutors on Monday, denies the charges.

According to police, four women were defrauded by the suspects in inserting a total of 470,000 yen into such machines without claiming a single prize.

In the latest development, police also arrested Akinori Tsukuda, a 30-year-old shop assistant, with producing a manual that instructed employees how to deceive customers. The manual, which was distributed to all of the parlors, told employees to give customers turns at the machines at no charge and "target tourists since they are unlikely to cause trouble."

In playing such a game, customers are charged between 500 yen and 10,000 yen for a chance to claim a variety of a prizes, including stuffed animals and tablet computers.

According to police, an employee would demonstrate in front of a customer that it is possible to win. However, before a customer played the settings of the machine would be changed such that the mechanical arm could not retrieve a prize.

New cases surface

In the initial investigation, police found 30 cases of fraud related to the rigging of machines at the game centers since 2015. The losses totaling about 6 million yen.

Since the initial arrests over the weekend, however, 80 additional reports of fraud have surfaced. The total amount lost in these cases is estimated at 1.65 million yen, police said.

Source: ANNnewsCH

Toyota to Launch Self-Driving Taxis in 2027

Toyota Motor will begin operating fully autonomous taxis in 2027 through a partnership with U.S. self-driving technology company Waymo, marking a major step in the Japanese automaker's efforts to expand driverless transportation services.

Mount Fuji Puts on First Snowcap

Mount Fuji has received its first snowcap of the season, the Japan Meteorological Agency announced on October 30, after temperatures at the summit plunged to minus 9.4 degrees Celsius, marking the arrival of winter conditions on Japan's highest mountain.

Chinese Female Spy Suspected of Targeting Nvidia Chief

U.S. intelligence agencies suspect that a Chinese female intelligence operative developed a close relationship with Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang in an attempt to obtain confidential corporate and U.S. government information, according to a report published by The New York Times on October 29th.

Japan Blocks Websites Leaking GMO Personal Data

The Japanese government has asked major telecommunications operators to forcibly block access to websites believed to contain personal information stolen in a cyberattack on GMO, it emerged on October 29th, as authorities moved to prevent further exposure of sensitive data online.

Typhoon No. 31 Heads Toward Japan's Remote Islands

Typhoon No. 31 was located near Minamitorishima Island in the Pacific Ocean, as of 3 a.m. on October 30, and was expected to approach the Ogasawara Islands south of Tokyo over the October 31-November 1 weekend while maintaining very strong intensity, bringing a growing risk of dangerously high waves, powerful swells and extremely rough seas.

MEDIA CHANNELS

MORE Society NEWS

Landlords Bear Financial Burden of Lonely Deaths

Japan's rapidly aging population is facing a growing crisis of elderly people dying alone at home, with grieving families sometimes unable to see their loved ones before burial and landlords increasingly forced to shoulder substantial cleanup and estate clearance costs when relatives abandon their inheritance.

Prison Inmates Help Preserve Japan's Traditional Crafts

Traditional Japanese crafts are finding an unexpected source of skilled workers in prisons across the country, where inmates are learning painstaking production techniques that build patience and concentration while helping preserve industries struggling with a shortage of craftspeople.

South Korean Man Arrested Over Killing of Japanese Woman Following Stock Crash

A Japanese woman in her 20s was found dead at an apartment complex in Cheonan, central South Korea, on October 29th, prompting police to detain a South Korean man in his 30s on suspicion of murder after he allegedly confessed to killing her because he had decided to commit suicide following stock market losses but could not bring himself to die alone.

Japan's Imperial Family Hosts Autumn Garden Party

Emperor Naruhito and Empress Masako hosted the annual autumn garden party at the Akasaka Imperial Gardens in Tokyo on October 29, welcoming approximately 1,400 guests, including actor Kotaro Yoshida and novelist Miyuki Miyabe, while female members of the Imperial Family attended in traditional Japanese attire.

Rescuers Save Paraglider Who Stopped Breathing

A 59-year-old water sports rental shop owner in Omachi, Nagano Prefecture, has received a letter of appreciation from police after rescuing a paraglider who plunged into a lake on September 21, pulling the unconscious man from the water and performing CPR after discovering he was no longer breathing.

Couple's Gardening Hobby Turns Out to Be Cannabis Cultivation

A married couple in Aira, Kagoshima Prefecture, have been arrested after police discovered cannabis plants growing in pots on the terrace of their home during a search connected to a separate investigation, authorities said on October 28th.

Elderly Woman Drives Along Railway Tracks, Ends in Tragedy

A woman in her 80s was killed after her car entered railway tracks on the Odakyu Enoshima Line in Fujisawa, Kanagawa Prefecture, shortly before 10:30 p.m. on October 27, with security camera footage showing the vehicle traveling along the tracks, passing an oncoming train and stopping with its hazard lights flashing before being struck from behind by another train.

Teen Hospitalized After Electric Shock From Basketball Hoop

A teenage male was rushed to a hospital after suffering an electric shock while putting away a motorized basketball hoop at a gymnasium in Kitakyushu, Fukuoka Prefecture, in an accident believed to have been caused by an incompatible extension cord, according to a report on October 27th.

< 2 3 4 5 >