- 14 Mar 2002
- 21,104
- 18,998
Tokuryū (トクリュウ) is the commonly used Japanese term for loosely organised criminal networks officially described as "anonymous and fluid criminal groups" (匿名・流動型犯罪グループ, tokumei ryūdō-gata hanzai gurūpu). Unlike traditional yakuza organisations, these groups generally have no fixed membership or clearly defined hierarchy, with participants often recruited through social media for individual crimes and communicating under false names or through encrypted services.
Tokuryū networks have become increasingly associated with special fraud (特殊詐欺, tokushu sagi), investment and romance scams, robberies and so-called "dark part-time jobs" (闇バイト yami baito), in which people are recruited online to carry out criminal tasks. Their changing membership and often international operations have made them particularly difficult for Japanese police to investigate.
Tokuryū networks have become increasingly associated with special fraud (特殊詐欺, tokushu sagi), investment and romance scams, robberies and so-called "dark part-time jobs" (闇バイト yami baito), in which people are recruited online to carry out criminal tasks. Their changing membership and often international operations have made them particularly difficult for Japanese police to investigate.
Financial losses from special fraud in Japan are now running at about ¥1 billion a day, driven in part by crimes linked to loosely organised tokuryū (トクリュウ) criminal groups. In the first half of this year, from January through June, losses reached about ¥181.6 billion, including damage from social media-based investment and romance scams. That was up 50% from the same period a year earlier, putting the total on course to surpass last year's record.
The rise comes as Japan faces growing losses from crime more broadly. Damage from property offences, including theft, reached about ¥498.4 billion last year, well above the roughly ¥375.9 billion recorded in 2002, when the number of Penal Code offences reached a post-war high.