Photo/Illutration An entrance to the Kabukicho district in Tokyo’s Shinjuku Ward on Jan. 26 (Arata Mitsui)

Tokyo police said they have arrested a gang of touts who pretended to be working for a well-known “izakaya” pub chain to lure customers to unrelated eateries that charged exorbitant prices.

On the streets of the Kabukicho entertainment district in Shinjuku Ward, the suspects claimed to be connected to an affiliate of the Torikizoku chain of “yakitori” izakaya. But they were actually associated with Chinese Dragon, an organized crime group based in the capital, police sources said.

The Metropolitan Police Department on Jan. 29 arrested Kenji Takahashi, 58, a resident of Tokyo’s Toshima Ward, on suspicion of obstructing business by deception.

Fourteen other men and women, aged from 18 to 58, were also arrested on the same suspicion.

According to the MPD’s anti-gang division, Takahashi conspired with the others to dupe male customers in Kabukicho in March and August last year.

The touts promised to take the men to a Torikizoku affiliate but instead led them to two nearby eateries owned by Takahashi and another suspect.

Therefore, police said, they interfered with the business of Torikizoku.

The MPD said it received more than 20 reports over the last year about these two eateries overcharging for food and beverages.

Police believe that Takahashi and the other suspects formed the largest touting group in Kabukicho, and that part of its profits have gone to yakuza crime syndicates and other organizations.

An Asahi Shimbun reporter walked on a Kabukicho street near a Torikizoku restaurant at 7 p.m. in late January and found out how the apparent scam worked.

A young man approached and said: “I can take you to a place next door right now. It’s an affiliate of Torikizoku. They use charcoal to grill the food, so it’s delicious. They use the same suppliers as Torikizoku.”

A short time later, three other touts surrounded the reporter.

Another man then approached the reporter and said, “To be honest with you, Torikizoku is full right now, so if I were to show you around, this is the only place I could take you.”

In only 10 minutes in Kabukicho, four touts had shown up, all using the name “Torikizoku.”

According to investigative sources, one of the eateries owned by Takahashi is located next to the building housing a Torikizoku pub.

The name of Takahashi’s place seems to change every two to three months, but it is always called “tori-something,” the sources said.

They said one of the restaurants where the reporter was urged to visit is owned by Takahashi.

Around December 2021, a social media post on X went viral about a “rip-off” eatery. The place was later identified as being owned by Takahashi.

Several postings on restaurant review sites said the same place charges “seating fees,” “charge fees” or “weekend fees” without giving an adequate explanation to customers.

Since 2017, Torikizoku Holdings Co., which operates the Torikizoku izakaya chain, has received complaints concerning touts using its name.

The company filed a damages report to the MPD and issued an alert to customers.

President Tadashi Okura in December 2021 posted a statement on X, saying, “Torikizoku does not use touts at all.”

According to organized crime experts, touting has increased since restrictions related to COVID-19 were lifted in Japan. The touts target tourists from outside of Tokyo, drunk people and foreign visitors.

Investigators believe that groups are using touts and illegal scouts as a source of revenue and are channeling profits to gangster organizations.

(This article was written by Tabito Fukutomi and Arata Mitsui.)

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