OSAKA — Police on Thursday arrested five suspects believed to have been involved in large-scale thefts of motorcycles and scooters in Osaka, Wakayama and other neighboring prefectures.
Police suspect the motorcycle theft ring was behind the theft of several thousand motorcycles in the Kinki region over the past several years.
The group is believed to have shipped the stolen bikes to Southeast Asia, authorities said.
The arrested include Masuomi Maekawa, 47, a motorcycle shop owner in Izumisano, Osaka Prefecture.
Police officers from Wakayama, Osaka and Hyogo prefectures searched storage facilities in the city of Akashi and the town of Inami, Hyogo Prefecture, and confirmed that some of the motorcycles kept there had been stolen.