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July 13, 2025
 

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GANGS

Osaka Prefectural Police headquarters
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Jul 12, 2025
Osaka police crack down on crime ring over underage prostitution
The group, made up of roughly 70 members, is suspected of recruiting about 130 underage girls for prostitution through social media.
Osaka Prefectural Police headquarters
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Jul 12, 2025
Osaka police crack down on crime ring over underage prostitution
The group, made up of roughly 70 members, is suspected of recruiting about 130 underage girls for prostitution through social media.
A video by the National Police Agency warns about fake scams.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Jul 8, 2025
Scams involving police impersonation surge
Victims lost over ¥30 billion to such fraud cases in the first five months of 2025.
Tomonobu Kojima, admitted his involvement in the "Luffy" cases at the first hearing of his trial at Tokyo District Court on Tuesday.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Jul 2, 2025
Senior member of 'Luffy' crime ring pleads guilty at hearing
Tomonobu Kojima, 47, said, "There is no mistake" regarding his charges of aiding robberies and committing fraud.
A police car in Manila. Philippines authorities have detained the suspected leader of the "JP Dragon" crime ring based in the Southeast Asian country.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Jun 6, 2025
Philippines detains leader of 'JP Dragon' crime ring
The criminal organization, which includes former Japanese gang members, allegedly worked with another Philippines-based fraud group led by a suspect known as "Luffy."
Masato Morihiro
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
May 23, 2025
Seven 'JP Dragon' crime ring members detained in Philippines
The seven members, including Hikari Ishikawa, 45, and Masato Morihiro, 37, were wanted by Japanese police on allegations of theft.
Tokyo's Metropolitan Police Department headquarters. Along with the National Police Agency, the MPD will carry out a major reorganization to beef up investigations into tokuryū groups.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
May 22, 2025
Japan police to launch team targeting tokuryū masterminds
The new police office is set to gather and assess information on tokuryū leaders around the country and identify targets for crackdowns.
Deceptive contractors prey on elderly homeowners and pressure them into signing contracts by making claims such as, "If you leave it unchanged, your house will tilt."
JAPAN / Crime & Legal / FOCUS
May 8, 2025
Japan struggles to crack down on home renovation scams
A senior police official said the rise in fraudulent renovation work is largely due to a legal loophole over small-scale construction work.
Tetsuya Yamaguchi at Tokyo's Haneda Airport on April 8
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Apr 30, 2025
How a Japanese fraud group ran scams from Southeast Asia
Police suspect that Tetsuya Yamaguchi, who was arrested on April 8 after being deported from Thailand, was involved in fraud totaling at least ¥3 billion ($21.1 million).
The proposal reportedly calls for a legal framework that would obligate telecom operators to store communication records for a fixed period.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Apr 18, 2025
LDP proposal would require telecom companies to store usage records
The proposal calls for a legal framework that would obligate telecom operators to store metadata and usage records for a fixed period.
A damages lawsuit, filed Tuesday in the Fukuoka District Court, names four defendants including the group’s boss, 83-year-old Kenichi Shinoda and his second-in-command, 77-year-old Kiyoshi Takayama.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Apr 16, 2025
Yamaguchi-gumi yakuza boss sued over fraud scheme in Fukuoka
The lawsuit names four defendants including the group’s boss, 83-year-old Kenichi Shinoda, better known as Shinobu Tsukasa.
The skyline during sunset in Shinjuku, Tokyo. Japan's new underground criminal groups operate under a highly organized and brutal system.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Apr 10, 2025
How police are cracking down on 'scout' sex broker groups
Major scout groups are under scrutiny, as authorities uncover a far more systematized and sinister network than previously imagined.
Former Kanto Rengo member Tetsuya Yamaguchi arrives at Haneda Airport in Tokyo's Ota Ward on Tuesday.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Apr 9, 2025
Ex-member of 'Kanto Rengo' quasi-gang group arrested
Tetsuya Yamaguchi, 46, was arrested for his alleged involvement in a phone scam operation in Cambodia.
Among those arrested, 1,011 were ringleaders or individuals who gave instructions. About 90% were perpetrators, including people who received defrauded money, and around 40% became involved in the crimes through recruitment via social media.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Apr 3, 2025
New ‘tokuryū’ crime groups outpace yakuza in arrests
The term was coined by the National Police Agency to describe a new form of criminal group that has emerged as an alternative to traditional yakuza organizations.
Officials of the National Public Safety Commission inspect the Kabukicho area of Shinjuku, Tokyo, in June 2024, as crimes committed by unscrupulous host clubs have surfaced.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal / FOCUS
Mar 24, 2025
Crimes by 'tokuryu' anonymous groups pose serious issue in Japan
Police have made capturing the ringleaders a top priority but are struggling in their investigations, largely due to the criminals' use of highly encrypted communication apps.
The Metropolitan Police Department in Tokyo's Chiyoda Ward. Tokyo police have arrested a number of suspects this month in connection with home improvement scams.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Mar 17, 2025
Police issue warning over home improvement scams
Such scams use similar tactics to those employed by fraudsters who impersonate relatives or public agency officials over the phone to defraud victims of their money.
Salvadoran police officers escort alleged members of the Venezuelan gang Tren de Aragua recently deported by the U.S. government to be imprisoned in the Terrorism Confinement Center prison, as part of an agreement with the Salvadoran government, at the El Salvador International Airport in San Luis Talpa, El Salvador, in this image released on Sunday.
WORLD / Politics
Mar 17, 2025
U.S. flies alleged gang members to El Salvador despite court block
Legal experts called the move the most radical test of America's system of checks and balances since the Civil War.
The illuminated advertising board of a host club in Tokyo's Kabukicho entertainment district. The bill approved by the government on Friday aims to ban hosts from emotionally manipulating customers into making excessive purchases — a common tactic in the industry.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Mar 7, 2025
Japan looks to crack down on host club exploitation with tighter regulations
Police received 2,776 consultations nationwide related to host clubs last year, with many involving women coerced into sex work to cover unpaid bills.
Migrants picked up at sea attempting to cross the English Channel from France disembark from Border Force vessel 'Typhoon' after it arrived at the Marina in Dover, southeast England, on Feb. 9.
WORLD
Feb 14, 2025
Britain wants to smash the gangs — but what gangs?
Experts say a bill against smuggling gangs and anti-smuggling laws across Europe will not stem migration and often target the wrong people.
Asylum seekers line up before crossing to the U.S. for appointments at El Chaparral crossing port in Tijuana, Baja California state, Mexico, on Monday.
WORLD / Crime & Legal / FOCUS
Jan 18, 2025
Gangs cash in on desperation of U.S.-bound migrants
As President-elect Donald Trump prepares to take office next week, gangs are using threats and extortion to exploit migrants trying to arrive in time.
Tokyo hit by torrential rainfall at rush hour
People line up at Shibuya Station in Tokyo as they try to avoid the heavy rain on Thursday.
Foreign drivers in Japan to face tougher license conversion rules from October
According to the National Police Agency, there were 75,905 people who converted their foreign driver’s license to a Japanese one in 2024, up from 48,885 in 2019.
Nissan clinches $4.5 billion bond deal after orders soar
Nissan Motor has raised $4.5 billion through a junk bond sale in U.S. dollars and euros, part of which carries a record-high coupon rate.
Chinese fighters came within 30 meters of Japanese spy aircraft, Tokyo says
A Chinese JH-7 fighter jet makes an near an Air Self-Defense Force YS-11EB surveillance aircraft over the East China Sea this week in this image released Thursday.
What Japanese politics could look like after Upper House election
Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba, who heads the ruling Liberal Democratic Party (center) waves to attendees as he departs after delivering a campaign speech in Yokohama on Sunday.
An emoji used to say it all. Now it might say too much.
Apple’s Craig Federighi shows off a set of emoji at a conference on June 13, 2016. While the small pictures have proved helpful in conveying nuance in our texts, younger people are using them less often.
‘Our ultimate goal is to save every single Japanese video game’
After nearly shuttering earlier this year, the Tokyo-based Game Preservation Society continues its work to save the early history of Japanese gaming.
Rare vintage shots and first-time shows at TOP’s 30th anniversary
The museum's curators selected a wide array of works from the archives for the milestone exhibitions. Among other photos, Nobuyoshi Araki's work from the series "Winter Journey" (1990) was included in the "Continuity and Change" exhibition that concluded in June.
New IG Arena set to dial down temperature at Nagoya Basho, in a good way
With IG Arena getting glowing early reviews as the Nagoya Basho’s replacement venue, it may be a while before fans wax nostalgic about the Aichi Prefectural Gymnasium.
Once a niche, anime is now mainstream content for Netflix and other streaming services
Though Netflix remains the dominant choice globally for anime viewers, Amazon Prime Video has also invested heavily in anime, steadily adding titles to their catalogue.

Podcast

One of the many entrances to the Kabukicho neighborhood in Tokyo’s Shinjuku Ward.
Kabukicho: Tokyo’s ‘stadium of desire’

Longform

Mount Fuji is considered one of Japan's most iconic symbols and is a major draw for tourists. It's still a mountain, though, and potential hikers need to properly prepare for any climb.
What it takes to save lives on Mount Fuji
By Alex K.T. Martin

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