Japanese woman believed to be behind string of robberies arrested since January

A Japanese woman belonging to a fraud ring believed to be behind a string of robberies in Japan has been in custody since January, a source close to the case told the Mainichi Shimbun.

According to an investigative source, the suspect is 26-year-old Risa Yamada, who is believed to have made fraudulent phone calls for the specialized fraud gang headed by Yuki Watanabe, 38. Watanabe had been held in an immigration facility in the Philippines before his Feb. 9 deportation to Japan and subsequent arrest for alleged theft.

In Japan, the term specialized fraud is used for scams involving swindlers gaining the trust of their targets over the phone or other remote means.

An arrest warrant has been issued for Yamada on suspicion of theft for her alleged involvement in a phone scam, and the Metropolitan Police Department's second investigation division will ask the Philippine authorities through the National Police Agency to extradite her. In addition to Yamada, the division believes that several other members of the ring have fled to the Philippines.

Meanwhile, 38-year-old Kiyoto Imamura, another suspect who was deported to Japan from the Philippines on February 7, has said he was not involved in any fraud or robbery, his Filipino lawyer told Mainichi Shimbun on February 8. The attorney quoted Imamura as saying I was not involved in the cases at all. The lawyer was apparently with Imamura for about 30 minutes on February 5. They said Imamura seemed shaken and stressed with the current situation.