Man Robbed of ¥9 Million; Planned to Hand to Woman Met Through Social Media

The Yomiuri Shimbun

16:45 JST, November 21, 2024

OSAKA – A company worker of Chinese nationality was robbed of his backpack containing about ¥9 million in cash when he was attacked by two men in a park in Yodogawa Ward, Osaka, on Wednesday evening. The 32-year-old man from Ikuta Ward in the city went there to see a woman he had met through social media.

The incident took place at about 6:20 p.m. in a park located close to JR Shin-Osaka Station in Yodogawa Ward.

The man sustained minor injuries to his neck, and the perpetrators fled from the scene. The Osaka prefectural police’s Yodogawa Police Station is investigating the case on suspicion of robbery causing injury.

According to the police, the man was asked by a 29-year-old woman to exchange 500,000 yuan into yen because she was in need of money. The man reportedly went to the park designated by the woman with the backpack, which contained about ¥12 million in cash.

When he was about to hand it over to the woman, the two men suddenly approached, pressed what appeared to be a stun gun to his neck and took his backpack, according to the police. About ¥3 million fell out of the backpack, and the two men fled with the remaining money.

The woman also tried to escape from the scene, but the man subdued her and handed her over to police officers who arrived at the scene in response to a passerby’s emergency call. The police are now questioning the woman.

The man and the woman met through social media about a week before, and it was the first time for them to meet each other, the police said. The two perpetrators were reportedly dressed in dark clothing.