Japan Arrests 2 Remaining Suspects Deported from Philippines

Tokyo, Feb. 9 (Jiji Press)--Tokyo police arrested two remaining Japanese fraud suspects also believed to be behind a series of robberies across Japan after they were deported from the Philippines late Wednesday night local time.

The Metropolitan Police Department arrested Yuki Watanabe, 38, and Tomonobu Kojima, 45, on their flight back to Japan. They arrived at Tokyo International Airport at Haneda early Thursday morning.

The two had been detained at an immigration facility in the Philippines along with two other Japanese suspects Kiyoto Imamura, 38, and Toshiya Fujita, 38, both of whom were arrested Tuesday aboard a plane bound for Japan from the Philippines.

Police believe that the four include a mastermind behind the string of robberies and plan to investigate their suspected links to the robberies as well as the fraud.

According to the MPD, the four are senior members of a telephone scam group that stole over 6 billion yen. Watanabe is believed to lead the group, while Kojima appears to be a key figure among those under Watanabe. Kojima collected and managed the money their group stole.

[Copyright The Jiji Press, Ltd.]