Japan home invasion crime wave targets elderly residents ‘too trusting’ of authority figures
- Economic hardship connected to the pandemic, with lost jobs and falling incomes, is thought to be at least partly to blame for the crime wave
- Virtually all victims have been in their 70s or 80s, most were bound with duct tape and some were beaten, suffering broken bones
Except, of course, the man on the phone was not a police officer, though the elderly victim – who has not been named – would later tell investigators that he sensed nothing out of the ordinary.
The 80-year-old’s reward for his honesty was being assaulted and bound, after which the two “gas company” employees ransacked his house, took 20,000 yen (US$189) in cash and a bank book with his account details before fleeing.
Fortunately, the victim in this case was unharmed, managed to free himself and sought help from a neighbour – but others have not been so fortunate.
In late September, two men dressed as gas company workers talked their way into the home of an elderly couple in Tokyo’s Adachi Ward, before assaulting the 80-year-old homeowner and binding his arms and legs. When his wife came home, she was also tied up and forced to reveal the PIN to their shared bank account.