Tokyo police arrest 3 for COVID subsidy fraud

The three are Taniguchi Rie, who lives in Tsu City in the central prefecture of Mie, and her sons in their 20s.

Investigators suspect the three fraudulently claimed a total of at least 900 million yen, or about 7 million dollars.

The subsidy program is designed to help businesses affected by the coronavirus pandemic.

The police say they applied for subsidies in 2020 with a false statement that revenues of three associates had dropped sharply amid the pandemic.

They allegedly received about 23,000 dollars through the program.

The woman and her sons are also believed to have made similar applications using the names of company and restaurant employees referred by their acquaintances.

The police say the suspects had received around 1,000 dollars or more in handling fees from each of those people after subsidies were paid to them.

The investigators have also put Taniguchi's former husband on a nationwide wanted list. They suspect that he instructed his wife and sons to commit the wrongdoing.