By Ferdinand Patinio
MANILA – Seven Japanese nationals allegedly linked to a notorious criminal fraud syndicate in Japan were recently arrested by the Bureau of Immigration (BI) in Bulacan and Manila.
In a news release on Friday, Commissioner Joel Anthony Viado reported that the seven foreigners were apprehended by BI fugitive search unit (FSU) operatives in two separate operations in San Jose del Monte, Bulacan and in Ermita, Manila on Wednesday.
Five of them were arrested in a residential area along Quirino highway in Bulacan. They were identified as Hiraki Ishikawa, 45; Tsubasa Amano, 30; Sasaki Ken, 37; Akira Sambonchiku, 26; and Naoto Matsumoto, 35.
The two other suspects — Rintaro Yamane, 27, and Masato Morihiro, 37 — were arrested in a condominium unit along Adriatico St. in Ermita, Viado said.
The suspects were identified by Japanese authorities to be members of the notorious “JP Dragon” group who are wanted in Japan for large-scale fraud.
The group is allegedly involved in a range of illegal activities, mostly fraud, targeting senior citizens in Japan. Their modus is to impersonate authorities to deceive victims into giving large sums of money.
The group allegedly stole ATM cards and posed as law enforcers to harass and deceive their elder victims in surrendering bank cards and other banking information under the pretext of a police investigation.
According to BI-FSU chief Rendel Ryan Sy, a summary court in Fukuoka, Japan has issued arrest warrants against six of them last March 5 due to charges of theft that were filed against them.
Matsumoto, meanwhile, was found to be an overstaying alien.
“The arrest of these key figures in the JP Dragon group is a major win for the administration,” Viado said.
“We have dismantled their presence in the Philippines, and this marks the collapse of their fraud operations.” (PNA)
