Police sent papers to prosecutors earlier this year on a Korean resident of Japan believed to be a North Korean agent for alleged fraud, investigative sources have said.
Investigative authorities believe the 65-year-old man, a resident of Saitama Prefecture, could be a key figure in North Korean espionage activities in Japan.
After analyzing seized documents and the man's cellphone records, police found he had ties to a Japanese sushi chef who had worked for North Korean leader Kim Jong Un's late father for more than a decade, the sources said Wednesday.