The government-backed Resolution and Collection Corp. has seized the Tokyo head office and premises of the pro-Pyongyang General Association of Korean Residents in Japan (Chongryon) over a loan repayment case, sources said Friday.

Chongryon's head office has functioned as the de facto North Korean Embassy in Japan for decades in the absence of diplomatic ties between Tokyo and Pyongyang.

The seizure Monday was in line with the Tokyo District Court's approval of the decision Feb. 18.

In June 2007, the district court ordered Chongryon to pay back about ¥62.7 billion to RCC, which took over that amount of bad loans from collapsed credit unions for Korean residents as they were considered effective loans to Chongryon from the failed institutions.