Hiroshima police rearrest a construction firm duo for criminal recruitment

Hiroshima Prefectural Police have rearrested Riho Maehara, 32, president of a construction company, and former executive Yuka Matsumoto, 30, for allegedly attempting to recruit a job applicant for a criminal organization.

The suspects are accused of attempting to abduct a 35-year-old man and transport him overseas to work as a caller in specialized fraud schemes. After rejecting the man for a position at their construction firm, the pair allegedly offered him lucrative telemarketing work abroad. The man contacted police before he could be moved overseas.

Investigators believe the pair acted as recruiters for ‘atokuryu’, a fluid and anonymous criminal network. This follows a previous arrest in August involving the alleged abduction of a 40-year-old man who was sent to Taiwan. Both suspects have denied the current allegations.