Missing Fukuoka student suspected in Cambodian fraud ring demands mother withdraw search request

FUKUOKA (TR) – A Fukuoka mother’s desperate 10-month search for her missing college-aged son has taken a dark turn, with authorities suspecting he may be caught up in a Southeast Asian telecom fraud syndicate, reports Abema Times (Oct. 19).

Late last year, the medical university student told his mother he was taking a short trip to South Korea with a senior coworker from his part-time job. It was his first time traveling overseas.

“He packed so lightly, just one bag, like it was a day trip,” his mother recalled. “He was excitedly getting ready, talking on the phone while drying his hair.”

A woman in Fukuoka Prefecture is searching for her son in Cambodia (X)

“I’ll be home by the end of the day”

However, on the second day of what was supposed to be a three-day trip, the mother noticed an anomaly on a smartphone location-sharing app. Her son’s GPS signal showed he was no longer in South Korea, but in Cambodia .

On the day he was scheduled to return, she messaged him via LINE: “You’re coming home today, right? Where are you?”

“I’m in Cambodia. I’ll be home by the end of the day,” he replied.

When the frantic mother asked if he was safe and urged him to go to the embassy, he simply responded, “It’s a normal trip.”

Shortly after, the mother received a suspicious SMS from someone claiming to be her son, but the phrasing felt entirely unnatural. Meanwhile, the GPS app showed his phone moving at vehicular speeds from west to east, bypassing the airport and heading deep into the country. After that, his phone stopped receiving messages and calls would not connect.

Missing person report

The mother immediately filed a missing person report with the police and consulted the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

She was then warned her son had likely been swallowed up by a tokushu sagi (special fraud) syndicate. In such a case, a person poses as a public official or police officer on the telephone to con a victim.

The case mirrors a growing trend of Japanese nationals being lured into Southeast Asian crime syndicates. In June, Takeshi Ohama, director of the National Police Agency’s Organized Crime Department, stated, “We are aware of missing persons numbering in the dozens who are believed to be in Cambodia.” That same month, NPA executives visited Cambodian national police to discuss crackdowns on “special fraud” scam rings operating within its borders.

About eight months after her son’s disappearance, the mother received a sudden call from an unknown number. She was instructed to download a highly encrypted communications app, leading to a video call with her son.

On the screen, her son and his traveling companion appeared to be sitting inside a Japanese-style izakaya with a bottle of wine. However, the mother immediately sensed something was wrong.

“There was no sign of other customers or staff walking by. It was strange,” she said. Fearing he was being monitored by a criminal organization, she carefully asked when he was coming home. He refused to give a straight answer, claiming instead that he had “decided to work” there. He would not disclose the name of the company or what his job entailed.

Then came an unexpected demand.

“He said he was worried about making a fuss in the media, and told me, ‘If you’ve filed a missing person report, withdraw it. Take a photo of the withdrawal certificate and send it to me,'” his mother said. “He told me it was causing ‘problems at his company.'”

When the mother refused, explaining that the police advised against dropping the report since his exact whereabouts remained unknown, her son curtly replied, “Whatever,” and ended the call.

He has been completely unreachable since. Messages asking “Are you alive?” and “How are you doing?” remain unread.

In September, the mother was seen at Fukuoka Airport, boarding a flight to Cambodia to coordinate directly with local authorities in a desperate bid to bring her son home. His current whereabouts remain entirely unknown.

Published in Cambodia , Crime , International and News

The editorial team at The Tokyo Reporter brings the site's readership the latest news from the under side of Japan.

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福冈（TR）——据《阿贝马时报》（10月19日）报道，福冈一位母亲苦苦寻找失踪的大学生儿子长达10个月，如今事情出现了令人担忧的转折，当局怀疑他可能卷入了一个东南亚电信诈骗集团。

去年年底，这位医科大学学生告诉他的母亲，他要和兼职的一位资深同事一起去韩国短途旅行。这是他第一次出国旅行。

“他收拾得特别轻便，只有一个包，就像是去一日游一样，”他母亲回忆道。“他兴奋地准备着，一边吹头发一边打电话。”

福冈县一名女子在柬埔寨寻找她的儿子（X）

“我今天结束前就能到家。”

然而，在原本计划为期三天的旅行的第二天，这位母亲注意到智能手机定位共享应用程序出现异常。她儿子的GPS信号显示他已不在韩国，而是在柬埔寨。

在他预定返回的那天，她通过LINE给他发消息：“你今天回家吧？你在哪里？”

“我在柬埔寨。今天结束前就能回家。”他回答说。

当焦急的母亲询问他是否安全并敦促他去大使馆时，他只是回答说：“这是一次普通的旅行。”

不久之后，这位母亲收到一条可疑的短信，发件人自称是她的儿子，但措辞却十分不自然。与此同时，GPS定位显示，他的手机以汽车般的速度从西向东移动，绕过机场，深入内陆。之后，他的手机无法接收短信，也无法拨打电话。

失踪人员报告

母亲立即向警方报案称女儿失踪，并咨询了外交部。

随后有人警告她，她的儿子很可能落入了“特专诈骗”团伙的圈套。在这种情况下，不法分子会冒充公职人员或警察，通过电话诈骗受害者。

这起案件反映了日本公民被诱骗加入东南亚犯罪集团的趋势日益加剧。今年6月，日本国家警察厅有组织犯罪课课长大滨武表示：“我们掌握数十名失踪人员的信息，他们据信身在柬埔寨。” 同月，日本国家警察厅高层访问了柬埔寨国家警察，讨论打击在柬埔寨境内活动的“特殊诈骗”团伙。

儿子失踪约八个月后，这位母亲突然接到一个陌生号码的来电。对方指示她下载一款高度加密的通讯应用，之后她便与儿子进行了视频通话。

屏幕上，她的儿子和他的旅伴似乎正坐在一家日式居酒屋里，面前摆着一瓶酒。然而，这位母亲立刻察觉到有些不对劲。

“当时没有其他顾客或员工经过，这很奇怪，”她说。她担心他可能被犯罪组织监视，于是小心翼翼地问他什么时候回家。他拒绝正面回答，只是声称自己“决定在那里工作”。他既不肯透露公司名称，也不肯透露自己的工作内容。

随后出现了一个意想不到的要求。

“他说他担心在媒体上引起轩然大波，还告诉我，‘如果你报了失踪人口，就撤回。把撤回证明拍下来发给我，’”他母亲说。“他还告诉我，这件事给他的公司带来了‘麻烦’。”

当母亲拒绝并解释说，由于儿子的确切下落仍然不明，警方建议不要撤诉时，她的儿子简短地回答说：“随便吧”，然后挂断了电话。

此后他便完全失联了。询问“你还活着吗？”和“你最近怎么样？”的信息都杳无音信。

9月，有人在福冈机场看到这位母亲，她正准备搭乘飞往柬埔寨的航班，以便直接与当地政府协调，竭尽全力将儿子带回家。目前，她的下落仍然完全不明。

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