The Cunning Tactics of Kabukicho’s Notorious Dating Scam Duo Yuri the Turtle Dash and Laila the Fast Runner

Shinjuku’s Kabukicho, where incidents involving men and women, such as Toyoko Kids and “Kouen Joshi” at Okubo Park, happen almost daily. Recently, a group of “scam women” based here has become a hot topic, especially on social media. Two of the most notorious women are referred to as “No. 1” and “No. 2.”
Their scam method is simple: they lure men through matching apps and then steal their money. Here, we will explain their tactics based on the testimonies of their victims.

 

 

No. 1 is “Yuri the Turtle Dash.”

Let’s start with “No. 1,” who goes by the name “Yuri.” She has caught the attention of many, and sighting reports, often accompanied by photos, have been widely shared on X (formerly Twitter).

Yuri uses dating apps to arrange meetings with men under the guise of a “no-strings-attached” paid relationship. They meet up and enter a rental room—a simple love hotel with just a bed and shower. Once inside, she demands payment upfront, usually around 20,000 yen. After receiving the money, she undresses the man, briefly performs oral sex, and then makes a dash to escape from the room. On X, she earned the nickname “Yuri the Turtle Dash” due to her habit of kissing the man’s glans and then fleeing. A man who fell victim to her scheme testified about how it happened.

“Her method is extremely well-practiced. Once we entered the rental room, she demanded payment upfront and, for some reason, asked me to delete our message history on the matching app. Then, she instructed me to take off my pants, and after a brief moment of oral sex, she said, ‘I’ll go buy some lotion, just wait here,’ and left the room. No matter how long I waited, she never came back. Looking back, I realize she made me take off my pants so I wouldn’t follow her when she left.”

Since she uses a regular dating app, her targets range from young men to middle-aged and older men. According to posts on social media, “Yuri the Turtle Dash” is spotted in Kabukicho almost every day. Out of curiosity, I decided to visit her usual area one weekday afternoon.

She is often seen around a fast food restaurant near Seibu Shinjuku Station, where she frequently arranges meetups with men. From there, on the way toward the center of Kabukicho, there’s an alley with the rental room Yuri often uses, so I walked in that direction.

 

I Encountered “Yuri the Turtle Dash!”

From the distance, I saw a woman wearing a distinctive hat and mask, just like the ones I had seen on X (formerly Twitter), walking with a middle-aged man. There was no doubt—it was “Yuri the Turtle Dash.” The two entered a rental room. Shortly after, I saw her again entering another rental room with a different man. Unfortunately, I couldn’t keep an eye on the entrance long enough to catch her “turtle dash” escape in action. However, within just an hour, it seemed like two men had already fallen victim to her scam.

There are many rumors swirling around “Yuri the Turtle Dash.” Some say, “She continued her scams even after being beaten up and covered in bruises by men seeking revenge.” Others claim, “She’s being threatened by a yakuza group acting as her backers.” With rumors of yakuza involvement, it’s probably best not to approach her lightly, even out of curiosity.

 

As Fast as an Adult Man? No. 2, Also Known as “Laila the Fast Runner”

No. 2 is also called “Laila the Fast Runner.” She uses a similar method to “Yuri the Turtle Dash,” but when she flees from the hotel with the money, her running speed is said to be incredibly fast. A video of a young woman sprinting through the hotel district, known as “Laila the Fast Runner,” has been a hot topic on X for some time.

I watched the video, and she is indeed so fast that even young men can’t catch up to her. The name “Laila” seems to come from her handle when she was live streaming on a certain platform, and that’s how she became known as “Laila the Fast Runner.”

It seems she uses a “mama-katsu” app. Mama-katsu is where men get paid by women to go on dates. “Laila the Fast Runner” is estimated to be in her mid-30s, and it appears her main targets are men in their 20s.

“Men show up at the meeting spot thinking they’ll get paid to go to the hotel. However, once inside, ‘Laila the Fast Runner’ reportedly says something like, ‘I want to meet regularly, so please pay 20,000 yen upfront as a contract fee.’ It’s a strange story, and mama-katsu itself is already full of suspicious elements, but men in their 20s seem to fall for it. There’s also a case where men, meeting through a regular dating app for a no-strings-attached encounter, were left alone when she ran away while they were taking a shower,” explained a writer familiar with Kabukicho.

The love hotel frequently used by “Laila the Fast Runner” is in an area near Okubo Park, where foreign streetwalkers gather at night. Unfortunately, despite investigating the area, she couldn’t be found.

 

There was also an incident where a famous YouTuber apprehended her.

A well-known YouTuber focused on fighting scams posted a video of a real-life confrontation with her, which has garnered over a million views. In the video, a victim consulted the YouTuber, who then lured “Laila the Fast Runner” and confronted her, ultimately turning her over to the police. Despite this, she stubbornly denied any wrongdoing. It seems that some victims have reported the incidents to the police, but due to the lack of evidence of money being exchanged, it’s difficult for the cases to be pursued.

Using matching apps for prostitution purposes is inherently a very gray area for both men and women. Particularly with enticing schemes like “mama-katsu,” it’s clear that such deals are not easily found. Even if something goes wrong, victims often end up having to just accept their losses. Driven by desire, you too might fall prey to “Scam Woman No. 3.”