Photo/Illutration The National Police Agency in Tokyo’s Chiyoda Ward (Asahi Shimbun file photo)

The National Police Agency plans to use generative AI to analyze investigative information and identify key figures of “tokuryu” anonymous criminal groups that have increasingly menaced Japanese society.

In its announcement on Aug. 28, the agency said its strengthened countermeasures against these groups include working closer with police authorities overseas.

The NPA in October will set up a tokuryu information analysis division that will use generative AI in hopes of tracking down the higher-ups in the criminal organizations.

Nationwide investigators in a tokuryu target crackdown team within Tokyo’s Metropolitan Police Department will carry out the arrests.

The NPA’s budget request for next fiscal year includes 1.441 billion yen ($9.8 million) for countermeasures against tokuryu.

Tokuryu group members are loosely connected mainly through social media to commit crimes, such as phone fraud. In some cases, their actions involve violence, including burglaries and home invasions.

According to the NPA, 9,383 tokuryu members were identified in fraud and other crimes last year, but only 9 percent of them were masterminds or higher-ups who gave the orders or instructions.

The leaders are difficult to identify because of the highly anonymous nature of the communications. Even the minions who carry out the actual crimes do not know who is giving the instructions.

In addition, members of these groups are often changed for each crime.

By using generative AI to analyze existing investigation reports, including instructions given in multiple crimes committed by the same group, the NPA believes it will be able to map out the leadership and communication structures of these organizations.

“We want to shed light on connections that have been invisible so far,” a senior NPA official said.

INTERNATIONAL EFFORT

Complicating matters for Japanese investigators is the fact that tokuryu groups in recent years have moved their bases overseas, such as to Cambodia and Thailand. They still target people living in Japan for phone scams and other crimes.

Police departments across Japan are increasingly collaborating with foreign police authorities to bust these organizations.

From January through August this year, Japanese police departments arrested a total of 41 Japanese nationals suspected of working for tokuryu groups based in four countries abroad.

The NPA plans to establish a new post responsible for coordinating efforts with police authorities overseas.

The agency also plans to examine how to obtain information from the communication apps used for such crimes. This may involve developing legal methods to obtain the communication records of suspects.

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