Japanese Police Arrest 29 in Cambodia Phone Scams, Tokyo Sergeant for 70M Yen Fraud, Six for Pachinko Vote Bribery

Japanese authorities have arrested 29 nationals extradited from Cambodia on suspicion of involvement in phone scams operated from a northeastern Cambodian town. The scams, which impersonated police officers from at least seven prefectures including Nagano, caused confirmed damages across multiple regions in Japan. Additionally, three former Vietnamese technical interns were arrested by Kanagawa police for withdrawing approximately 100 million yen obtained through fraudulent part-time job schemes. In Tokyo, a 40-year-old sergeant from the Metropolitan Police Department's Tsukiji station was arrested for illegally opening bank accounts using forged driver's licenses; these accounts were linked to approximately 70 million yen in criminal proceeds. Separately, Osaka police detained a 47-year-old unemployed man for stealing cash from a middle school student's backpack in a park, and also arrested a foreign national claiming to be a martial artist for impersonating a police officer and stealing cash cards. Furthermore, six individuals, including the president of a pachinko company, were arrested by the Tokyo Metropolitan Police on suspicion of violating election laws by promising cash payments of 3,000 to 4,000 yen to employees and part-time workers in exchange for votes in the recent Upper House election, with allegations involving over 250 people. The arrests highlight ongoing issues related to fraud, impersonation, and election law violations in Japan.