Two Japanese ‘crime ring’ members deported

MANILA, Philippines — Two Japanese fugitives suspected of being part of a crime ring involved in a series of violent robberies in their country have been deported Tuesday.

Deported are Fujita Toshiya and Imamura Kiyoto, both 38.

Fujita was arrested on February 21, 2021. He has a warrant of arrest in Tokyo. Japanese authorities tagged him as a senior member of an organized fraud group running a phone scam, while Imamura was arrested on December 2019. He faces several arrest warrants in his country for theft.

The two were deported after criminal cases against them in the Philippines have been dismissed. Justice Secretary Jesus Crispin Remulla said both tried to evade deportation by conspiring with locals to file cases against them.

The duo was deported for violation of the terms and conditions of their visa for being a fugitive, as well as being a risk to the public interest.

“While the identity of ‘Luffy’ is not yet confirmed, we are working with the Department of Justice and the Japanese authorities to be able to expedite the deportation to give more clarity to this case,” said Immigration Commissioner Norman Tansingco on Tuesday.

Two other Japanese fugitives up for deportation are Watanabe Yuki and Saito Tomonobu.

RELATED STORIES

PH to deport two of four high-profile Japanese fugitives

Foreign fugitives use fake cases, schemes to evade deportation, says Remulla

je