A Chinese man wanted for fraud has been arrested after re-entering Japan to buy face masks amid the coronavirus outbreak, police said Wednesday.

Zhang Zhiqiang was arrested Feb. 2 when he arrived at Kansai Airport in Osaka Prefecture with an empty suitcase, the police said.

"I came to Japan to buy masks for friends who live in China," the 22-year-old was quoted by the police as telling investigators.

Zhang allegedly withdrew around ¥1.4 million from an ATM with a cash card on Feb. 20 last year that was stolen from a woman in her 80s in Osaka.

Curtailed supplies have made it difficult for residents in some Chinese cities to secure daily necessities as well as face masks.