Japan Police to Launch Team Targeting "Tokuryu" Masterminds

   Tokyo, May 22 (Jiji Press)--Japan's National Police Agency said Thursday that it will establish a new office aimed at collecting and analyzing information on masterminds in "tokuryu" loosely organized crime groups made up of anonymous members.
   Also, investigators will be gathered from around the country to arrest the leaders of tokuryu groups, which use members connected through social media to engage in various illegal activities such as fraud, robbery and drug trafficking.
   Tokyo's Metropolitan Police Department, which is central to the country's investigations into tokuryu groups, will carry out a major reorganization to accommodate such investigators.
   Japanese police have so far probed tokuryu-linked fraud cases by setting up joint investigative task forces among prefectural police departments and arrested perpetrators to obtain leads and track down masterminds.
   But this method has been hampered by tokuryu groups' use of highly confidential communication apps such as Signal and Telegram, which encrypt messages and allow automatic deletion over time. Even if investigators are able to track down middle-ranking members, masterminds' use of multiple app accounts often makes it difficult to reach senior members and uncover the full picture of incidents.

(2025/05/22-13:34)

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