Japan police conduct 13 undercover probes into 'dark' jobs

The probes, involving the use of fake identification documents to apply for such illicit jobs, called 'yami baito,' have led to the arrests of five people on allegations such as preparation for robbery and attempted fraud, according to the agency.

"We have achieved some results, including preventing damage," a senior NPA official said.

"We hope to share our know-how with each police department and improve our ability to utilize" the investigation method, the official added.

In undercover investigations, police officers respond to solicitations on social media and pretend to carry out crimes such as robbery and fraud.

As many job offers require applicants to submit their personal information in advance, police officers use fake driver's licenses and My Number cards with false names, addresses and altered face photographs to contact recruiters and pose as hires.

The investigation method is aimed at catching perpetrators and making it difficult to recruit people for yami baito jobs.

The agency announced its implementation guidelines for undercover probes in January last year.

Of the 13 investigations, criminal groups gave detailed instructions, such as meeting locations, after police presented fake IDs in seven cases, the agency said.

In the remaining six, police sent images of the IDs and communicated with recruiters on highly anonymous messaging apps before losing contact.

In four of the seven cases in which instructions were given, police arrested a total of five people who showed up at meeting locations.

Of the four cases, three involved the arrests of three people on suspicion of fraud, including an arrest by Tokyo's Metropolitan Police Department last May, while the other led to the arrest of two people over planned robbery.

Police were unable to meet any member of criminal groups in person in the remaining three cases.

The NPA has not disclosed details of the cases, saying that criminal groups may take countermeasures.

"We were able to prevent damage by contacting people who received fraud calls, and some cases led to the arrest of other people thanks to leads gained in investigations," a senior NPA official said.

Cracking down on 'tokuryu' anonymous and fluid criminal groups is an urgent task for Japanese police, as fraud damage hit a record high last year.

In addition to undercover probes, the NPA is planning to introduce an investigation method in which police open bank accounts under fictitious names in order to tackle illegal buying and selling of bank accounts for use to receive scam proceeds.