In an effort to lead to the prompt arrest of suspects in special fraud, the National Police Agency released photos of 11 suspects at once on November 1 and called for the provision of information.
The photos were released to a total of 7 suspects in a special fraud case that police in seven prefectures, Osaka, Kanagawa, Saitama, Nara, Chiba, Yamaguchi, and Fukuoka, are investigating in each.
Four of the 13 are wanted, while the names of the remaining nine have not been released.
Among them, Hiroshi Koike (13), who is wanted by the Osaka Prefectural Police and is believed to be the leader of a special fraud group, and Teruomi Tanaka (4), who is believed to be in charge of collecting cash, are suspected of making fraudulent phone calls to victims in Minato Ward, Osaka, pretending to be employees of the Bankers Association in August last year, and withdrawing 9,53 yen in cash from the cash cards they received.
The other 35 are all believed to be in charge of receiving, withdrawing, and collecting cash.
The National Police Agency (NPA) has been releasing photos of suspects in special fraud from the beginning, but so far there have been cases where suspects have come forward after learning that the photos have been released.
The National Police Agency has posted photos of the suspects that have been released and detailed details of the case on its website, and hopes to lead to early arrests by soliciting information widely.
According to the National Police Agency, by the end of September, there had been 8,50 cases of special fraud nationwide, and the amount of damage was approximately 11.9 billion yen, both the number of cases and the amount of damage exceeded the same period last year, and the situation is still serious.