Sixteen loan brokers were arrested Tuesday on suspicion of fraudulently securing loan guarantees by a government-backed agency for small business owners in Tokyo, prosecution investigators said.
A number of small businesses in Tokyo allegedly paid huge commissions to the brokers to obtain guarantees from Credit Guarantee Corp. of Tokyo, an affiliate of the Ministry of International Trade and Industry, for loans from financial institutions, investigators at the Tokyo District Public Prosecutor's Office said.
The arrested were named as Kiyoshi Hara, 50, Akira Murayama, 43, Yoshihiko Noutomi, 72, Yoshio Ogisu, 63, Masami Urano, 53, and employees of their management consultant companies.