Man Offers 5 Million Yen to Hostess as Lifetime Gift in Unusual Plot

“I have money, so I’ll support you”

A 60-year-old man who swindled 1 million yen from a female cabaret club worker was arrested.

On the morning of November 27 at around 9 a.m., Masahiro Nakatani (60), of unknown address and occupation, appeared from inside the Shinjuku Police Station building to be sent for prosecution. Looking down to avoid showing his face, only the thinning top of his head was visible as he walked. Even after raising his head, he continued to turn away from reporters’ cameras.

Nakatani is suspected of fraud for telling a woman in her 20s, working at a cabaret club in Kabukicho, Shinjuku, “I’ll give you 5 million yen as a lifetime gift. Because of gift tax and accounting reasons, you need to receive part of it in advance,” and then taking 1 million yen from her.

“Nakatani not only placed high-value orders at the cabaret club but also bought dresses and shoes for the woman outside the club to make her believe he was wealthy. He then said, ‘I have money, so I’ll support you,’ and proposed the lifetime gift. After the woman handed over the cash, Nakatani became unreachable, prompting her to contact the police, leading to the discovery of the crime. Nakatani appears to deny the charges, saying, ‘I said I would support her with purchases, but I never said I would give her money,’ and ‘I can’t recall whether I received the money.’

Since July this year, the police have received about ten similar complaints, with total damages around 4 million yen, suggesting Nakatani may have committed additional offenses,” explained a social affairs reporter.

Online posts indicate that similar incidents occurred at other affiliated clubs, suggesting these types of frauds were happening frequently.

In most financial disputes in the nightlife district, the cast members are on the offending side

In nightlife districts such as cabaret clubs, it is not uncommon for male customers to claim they were swindled out of large sums of money through the romance sales tactics of female cast members. In March of this year, a former regular customer filed a lawsuit seeking 38.5 million yen in damages for romance and marriage fraud against a well-known cabaret hostess, which drew public attention. In May 2024, another shocking case occurred when a former customer, who had spent about 16 million yen under the promise of marriage, stabbed the female owner of a girls’ bar in what became known as the “Shinjuku Tower Mansion Murder.”

Since June of this year, romance sales have been banned under the Entertainment Business Law, but the basic operating style of cabaret clubs and similar nightlife establishments still revolves around such romantic engagement. In this environment, where customers spend heavily to win a cast member’s favor, the structural position of the offending party in financial disputes is often the cast member. However, some crime writers caution that it’s not always that simple.

“They often hear stories of cabaret hostesses being swindled by customers. One famous hostess even said on TV that she was defrauded of 20 million yen through an investment scam. Investment scams targeting hostesses are relatively common because some hostesses earn well and have an interest in investing, making them attractive targets. Another frequent scam involves people posing as talent scouts.

Schemes like the recent case—claiming to give money but making the victim pay taxes in advance—used to be common in special frauds. But doing it face-to-face is rare. Anyone with a little knowledge would realize that paying gift tax before receiving money is clearly suspicious.”

The nightlife world allows someone with skill and initiative to earn large sums on their own. But it also attracts opportunists who come for the money.

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