Man arrested for allegedly leading 2.2 billion yen fraud group

The Metropolitan Police Department has arrested 34-year-old Seito Sasaki, suspected of being the leader of a specialized fraud group. The group allegedly defrauded victims of approximately 2.2 billion yen across Tokyo, Saitama, Chiba, and Kanagawa prefectures between February 2023 and November 2024.

Sasaki is accused of conspiring with accomplices to impersonate municipal employees. In one instance, the group reportedly contacted a woman in her 90s in Kodaira, Tokyo, claiming she needed to provide information for benefit payments, subsequently using her cash card to withdraw approximately 5.6 million yen.