Uchikoshi Specter Leader Accused of Deceptive Inspection Sales Tactics

“We Previously Worked on Your Home, and We Have Some Free Time for a Free Inspection.”

The men made such phone calls to lure elderly men, visiting their homes to fraudulently obtain construction fees.

On March 12, the Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department’s Organized Crime Countermeasures Division arrested unemployed Tatsumi Saito (35), a resident of Chuo Ward, Tokyo, on suspicion of attempted fraud. He is accused of conspiring with accomplices to unlawfully obtain money for underfloor construction work.

“The incident occurred about three and a half years ago, in November 2021. Saito and his associates offered a free inspection and visited the home of an elderly man, Mr. A, in his 80s, living in Hadano City, Kanagawa Prefecture. They told him, ‘There are cracks in the foundation. If you don’t fix it immediately, it will cause major problems, and your house will start to tilt,’ instilling fear and leading him to sign a contract. They attempted to defraud him of 430,000 yen through a home renovation scam.

Saito is effectively the leader of the ‘Uchikoshi Specter,’ an anonymous and mobile crime (Tokuryu) group composed of former motorcycle gang members. About a dozen members posed as renovation contractors under names like ‘Sanyo’ and ‘Sanno,’ repeatedly using inspection scams to exploit homeowners’ fears and secure construction contracts. According to the police, in the two and a half years leading up to March last year, around 100 people across Tokyo and three other prefectures fell victim to the scheme, with total damages amounting to approximately 57 million yen,” said a reporter from a national newspaper’s social affairs department.

“I noticed your roof is damaged”

A photographer from this magazine captured images of suspect Saito being escorted on March 14. He remained hunched over in the back seat of the transport vehicle, never lifting his face. In recent years, troubles related to inspection scams have been on the rise.

“The Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department’s Organized Crime Countermeasures Division also arrested four men, including a man in his 40s who called himself ‘Super Salaryman’ on social media, on March 11. Their crimes were particularly malicious. They would instill fear in their targets by saying things like, ‘We were doing construction nearby and noticed that your roof is damaged,’ coercing them into unnecessary repair contracts. It is believed that between February 2019 and the past five years, they signed around 800 construction contracts and generated over 10 billion yen in sales.” (National newspaper social affairs reporter)

Former Kanagawa Prefectural Police detective and crime journalist Taihei Ogawa explains the increasing prevalence of inspection scams:

“After the COVID-19 pandemic subsided and restrictions on door-to-door sales were lifted, cases of inspection scams surged. Most victims are elderly people living alone. Since they cannot climb onto their roofs, they are unaware of any damage to their homes. Many end up believing what these fraudulent contractors tell them.

Additionally, for elderly people living alone, it can be pleasant to have young visitors who are around the same age as their children or grandchildren. When they are addressed as ‘Mom’ or ‘Dad,’ they are more likely to engage in conversation. The perpetrators take advantage of this psychological vulnerability in elderly people. This is a truly malicious crime.”

The police are continuing their investigation to uncover the full extent of the fraudulent activities carried out by the Tokuryu group, which repeatedly engages in inspection scams.