Japanese police have arrested two people suspected of helping a fraud ring that allegedly stole about 81 million yen in cryptocurrency from a woman in her 40s after posing as law enforcement.
Investigators said the scam began with a phone call from a man claiming to be with the Osaka Prefectural Police. According to police, the caller told the woman that her card had appeared among accounts linked to a money-laundering investigation and warned that she was close to arrest unless she could “prove her innocence.”
Victim allegedly pressured into crypto transfer
Police allege the false accusation and threat of arrest pushed the woman into transferring digital assets worth around 81 million yen, or about $515,000. Authorities have not publicly identified which cryptocurrencies were sent, and they have not disclosed wallet addresses tied to the case.
The two suspects now under arrest, aged 31 and 38, are suspected of involvement in the scheme. Investigators say the cases linked to the pair total roughly 240 million yen in losses, suggesting the 81 million yen incident may be part of a wider operation.
Investigators point to overseas fraud center
Authorities believe the fraud group operated from Cambodia and used police impersonation to pressure victims into moving their assets. Investigators also suspect a Chinese national directed the operation from what they describe as a Cambodia-based scam center overseas.
That overseas angle places the case within a broader pattern seen in other regional investigations, where fraud networks based outside Japan are accused of targeting victims remotely through phone calls and scripted intimidation.
Fake police scams are rising in Japan
The arrests come as Japan faces a sharp increase in losses from scams involving criminals posing as police officers. Through July 2026, fake police fraud caused losses of 61.71 billion yen across 5,422 cases, according to the figures cited in the report.
More broadly, total special-fraud losses in Japan reached 210.81 billion yen over the same period, up 42.9% from a year earlier. The 81 million yen transfer in this case was described as far above the average loss per completed case in the first half of the year.
Crypto transfers remain a key target
The case also highlights how cryptocurrency is being used in fraud schemes in Japan. Authorities have warned that scammers increasingly persuade victims to send funds to fraudulent platforms, often after pretending to be police officers or prosecutors.
In response, regulators are tightening controls on how suspected fraud proceeds move through crypto exchanges. Measures cited in the report include delays on withdrawals, stricter checks for newly added wallet addresses, and stronger authentication procedures.
For now, police have not released further technical details about the transferred assets. The confirmed next step is the continuing investigation into the two arrests and the suspected Cambodia-linked network behind the alleged scam.
Source: crypto.news