Tokyo Robbery Suspects Found to Have Bought Luxury Items

Tokyo, March 15 (Jiji Press)–Suspects in a high-profile 423-million-yen robbery case in Tokyo in January purchased luxury items or repaid debts after the incident, it was learned Sunday. They are likely to have used part of the stolen money, investigative sources said. Tokyo’s Metropolitan Police Department is stepping up its investigation into the case, believing that the suspects knew in advance the date and time of the transfer of the cash and where the money was to be taken. The MPD arrested seven people Saturday for allegedly stealing three suitcases containing a total of 423 million yen in cash on a street in Tokyo’s Taito Ward and assaulting a 43-year-old man, such as by using spray, around 9:30 p.m. Jan. 29. Of the suspects, Jinryu Kano, 21, a senior member of a group affiliated with Yamaguchi-gumi, a major Japanese organized crime syndicate, bought a foreign-brand watch worth about 2 million yen and a minivan priced at approximately 10 million yen after the suspected robbery, according to the sources. Koji Koike, 47, purchased a car priced at some 3 million yen, while some suspects repaid debts, the sources said. In addition, about 10 million yen in cash was confiscated from a place linked to Yuto Ito, 27, a high-ranking member of a group under the aegis of Sumiyoshi-kai, another major crime syndicate, according to the sources. Koike and Kano are seen to have directed the robbery, while Ito and two others are believed to have actually committed the robbery. The remaining two suspects procured vehicles used in the crime, the investigative sources said. END [Copyright The Jiji Press, Ltd.]