Tag - organized-crime

 
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June 30, 2026
 

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ORGANIZED CRIME

Yukio Tanaka, 59, is accused of shooting Takayuki Ohigashi, the Ohsho president who was 72 at the time, to death in Kyoto.
JAPAN
Jun 29, 2026
Prosecutors seek life sentence over 2013 Ohsho president murder
The defendant, Yukio Tanaka, is accused of shooting Takayuki Ohigashi, the Ohsho president who was 72 at the time, to death in Kyoto.
Hideharu Inoue was detained by Philippine authorities on Tuesday.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Jun 26, 2026
Apparent senior member of ‘Luffy’ crime ring detained in Manila
The Tokyo Summary Court has issued an arrest warrant for Hideharu Inoue, 56, on suspicion of theft.
The Metropolitan Police Department's headquarters in Tokyo's Chiyoda Ward
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Jun 22, 2026
Japan arrests man suspected of links to alleged scam syndicate Prince Group, media report
The Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department have arrested Hu Shi, a Cypriot national, on suspicion of falsifying documents.
A person walks toward a police officer on a cordoned-off street where a fire broke out at British Prime Minister Keir Starmer's home in north London, Britain, in the early hours of May 12, 2025.
WORLD / Crime & Legal
Jun 16, 2026
Amateur saboteurs: the proxies carrying out attacks for gangs, Russia and Iran
A growing list of mainly young men are being found ​guilty in Britain of carrying out serious criminal acts on behalf of shadowy online figures for money.
Smartphones and PCs seized by Osaka Prefectural Police in connection to a social media scam that led to the arrest of 41 people
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Jun 11, 2026
Osaka police arrest 41 over side-job scam affecting 2,300 people
In the scam posted on social media, victims were told they could earn large sums through a side job if they first paid for training courses.
Inside a compound at the Chong Chom OSmach border crossing that authorities say was used for scam operations in Cambodia on March 12
ASIA PACIFIC / Crime & Legal
Jun 8, 2026
Cambodia scam centers increase despite crackdown, report says
Cambodia, alongside Myanmar and Laos, has become a hub for scam compounds where trafficked workers are often forced to carry out fraud schemes.
A miner descends into a hole dug in search of gold in Venezuela in 2010. Venezuela, which has the world's largest proven oil reserves, is also rich in diamonds, bauxite, coltan and rare earths.
WORLD
Jun 5, 2026
‘Blood gold’: how gangs took control of Venezuela’s mines
Nearly all Venezuelan mining activity is controlled by gangs or by guerrillas from neighboring Colombia.
Tokyo police have arrested three more men in connection with a robbery in the capital's Ueno district in January in which a group of men lost suitcases full of cash amounting to ¥423 million.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Jun 3, 2026
Three more arrested over January’s suitcase robbery in Tokyo
The three men are believed to have close ties with major crime syndicates.
A new agreement between the National Police Agency and nine major banks will allow prefectural police to inquire about specific bank accounts thought to be involved in fraud schemes and quickly freeze them.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
May 28, 2026
NPA inks agreement with major Japan banks to hasten special fraud response
The shift from physical mail to digital requests will allow authorities to freeze accounts receiving fraud proceeds more quickly.
Prison guards escort Chinese nationals suspected of running scam centers to a prison after their arrest in Colombo, Sri Lanka, on May 9. A surge in arrests of suspected foreign scammers in Sri Lanka has authorities concerned that the island is fast becoming a hub for online crime.
ASIA PACIFIC / Crime & Legal
May 20, 2026
Crackdown in Southeast Asia pushes scam networks to Sri Lanka
Since the start of the year, police have arrested more than 1,000 foreign nationals, mainly from China, Vietnam and India, for alleged involvement in cybercrime.
Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, who is seeking a fourth nonconsecutive term, has often faced accusations from his opponents that he is lax on crime.
WORLD / Politics
May 13, 2026
Brazil’s Lula launches plan to fight organized crime ahead of elections
Brazil’s battle with powerful criminal factions has been a point of tension with the U.S., and a priority during last week’s meeting between Lula and President Donald Trump.
Sri Lankan police stop vehicles at a checkpoint in Colombo in 2022.
ASIA PACIFIC / Crime & Legal
May 3, 2026
Sri Lankan police arrest 37 Chinese at suspected scam center
The arrests came a month after 152 foreign nationals, mostly Chinese, were detained for allegedly running a cyberscam operation in the island’s northwest.
The Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department has set up a special task force to intensify its crackdown on the Kohei-ikka, a Sumiyoshi-kai-affiliated designated crime group suspected of deepening its involvement with <i>tokuryū</i> networks, including special fraud linked to illegal job schemes.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Apr 23, 2026
Yakuza membership fell to record low in 2025
Authorities attribute the decline to an aging population within the criminal groups, tighter enforcement and a nationwide rollout of anti-gang ordinances.
Suspects of a crypto asset fraud scheme arrive at Tokyo&#039;s Haneda Airport on Thursday after being transferred from Indonesia.
JAPAN
Apr 17, 2026
Japanese men held over fraud allegations after transfer from Indonesia
The men were suspected of convincing a woman in Nara Prefecture to purchase the cryptocurrency ethereum and transfer the funds to an account managed by them.
Five members of the Philippines-based JP Dragon crime ring were arrested for allegedly posing as police in 2022 to defraud an elderly woman in Gifu Prefecture of ¥1.4 million.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Apr 8, 2026
Police arrest five more alleged members of Philippines-based Japan crime ring
The latest arrests have brought the total number of apprehended members and people with ties to the group to 14.
Police are investigating a connection between fraud cases in Ehime and Osaka prefectures.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Apr 7, 2026
Woman defrauded of ¥1.2 billion in largest scam loss on record in Japan
Individuals posing as police officers and prosecutors instructed the woman to transfer funds under the pretense of it being part of an investigation into her assets.
Senior officials from the Tokyo, Chiba, Saitama and Kanagawa prefectural police hold a joint news conference in Tokyo in December following arrests of four suspected masterminds behind a series of robberies in the Tokyo metropolitan area last year.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Apr 3, 2026
Police took action against 12,000 people over tokuryū in 2025
The National Police Agency aims to uncover the full picture of the crime groups and identify their leaders.
Huione headquarters in Phnom Penh, Cambodia, in March 2025. Huione Group and its affiliates have laundered at least $4 billion for criminals.
ASIA PACIFIC / Crime & Legal
Apr 2, 2026
Cambodia says it extradited accused money laundering leader to China
The Southeast Asian country added that the action showed it was cracking down on scam ​operations.
The Tokyo Metropolitan Department&#039;s headquarters in Tokyo&#039;s Chiyoda Ward. Daisuke Jinbo, formerly of the department&#039;s organized crime division, said during his trial that he leaked highly confidential investigative information out of desperation due to harassment by a senior officer.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Mar 25, 2026
Former Tokyo police officer found guilty of leak to sex scout group
In the trial, defendant Daisuke Jinbo, formerly of the organized crime division at the Metropolitan Police Department, said he acted out of desperation due to harassment.
The Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department&#039;s website dedicated to anonymous and transient criminal groups
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Mar 25, 2026
Tokyo police launch website detailing anonymous criminal groups
The website outlines details of the latest fraud methods and presents accounts of people who took on illegal jobs.
Uruguay federation reportedly cancels charter flight after World Cup exit
Uruguay&#039;s Jose Maria Gimenez reacts after the team&#039;s loss against Spain at the 2026 FIFA World Cup on Friday.
Inside Japan’s rigid adoption system, a British family finds a way
James Benstead, his wife, Jesse, and their three children. Their adopted son is in the rear stroller.
India’s gig workers pay the price for exposure to New Delhi’s hazardous air
Rohit Kushwaha waits for a customer as he delivers his last parcel of the day, in New Delhi in January. His work as a delivery driver has helped pay the family’s bills, but has had a significant impact on his health.
Chinese and Russian bombers and fighter jets stage joint patrol near Japan
A Chinese Air Force H-6 bomber is seen during a joint patrol with Russian military aircraft on Saturday.
U.S. missile moves in Japan send China clear message: A new era has arrived
Soldiers conduct the first Typhon midrange capability live-fire exercise outside of the continental United States, firing an SM-6 missile in July last year in Australia&#039;s Northern Territory during Exercise Talisman Sabre.
Japan’s fertility system offers few safe paths for same-sex couples
A Tokyo Pride parade participant holds a sign that says "we want to be a married couple, not a couple."
Inside Japan’s rigid adoption system, a British family finds a way
James Benstead, his wife, Jesse, and their three children. Their adopted son is in the rear stroller.
A French ship with close ties to Japan combines arts and sciences on the high seas
Romain Troublé, the executive director of Tara Ocean Foundation, speaks to visitors aboard the Tara during a rare port call in Tokyo in April.
In Kyushu’s far south, Senti.U sparks a culinary destination
Chef Yasuhiko Uchida was born in Saga Prefecture but has made his home in Kanoya, Kagoshima Prefecture, since 2012.
‘The colors speak for themselves’: How Japan’s chroma bible went global
“A Dictionary of Color Combinations” is meant to function as a quick-reference guide for artists, designers and anyone with a passing interest in aesthetics as a quantifiable pursuit.

Podcast

One of the many entrances to the Kabukicho neighborhood in Tokyo’s Shinjuku Ward.
Kabukicho: Tokyo’s ‘stadium of desire’

Longform

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What Yokoze can teach Japan about rural revival
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