A 26-year-old Malaysian man has been arrested on suspicion of using fake 500 yen coins in vending machines, it was learned Oct. 14.Several tampering incidents have been reported in recent weeks as it has become known that certain Korean and Hungarian coins are roughly the same size as a 500 yen coin. The suspect, whose name is Huang Wei Xiong, according to the Pinyin system reading, allegedly tried to steal money after inserting a modified South Korean 500-won coin into a vending machine and pressing the return lever. The coin had been shaved to match the weight of a 500 yen coin.Police said Huang was arrested on a street in Minato Ward in late September, adding that they are currently investigating how the suspect obtained the fake coin.On Oct. 12, police in Nagano Prefecture said a total of 773 500-won coins, altered to pass for 500 yen coins have been found in vending machines. The altered coins were found in 60 vending machines located around JR Nagano Station and a commercial arcade after a shopkeeper complained to the police last week.
