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Ex-sumo wrestler accused of orchestrating ¥14 million nationwide drugstore theft ring

Tokyo police have arrested a 34-year-old unemployed man suspected of masterminding a crime syndicate that executed a massive shoplifting spree at drugstores

Tokyo Reporter2026-10-01 08:46查看原文 ↗

TOKYO (TR) – Tokyo Metropolitan Police have arrested a former sumo wrestler who is suspected of masterminding a criminal syndicate that recruited pawns on social media to execute a massive shoplifting spree at drugstores across Japan, reports the Asahi Shimbun (Sep. 30).

Tomoya Taguchi, a 34-year-old resident of Yokohama City’s Sakae Ward, was arrested on suspicion of theft, police announced on Wednesday.

Upon his arrest, Taguchi reserved his right to remain silent, telling investigators, “I will speak after consulting with a lawyer.”

According to Tokyo police, Taguchi is accused of conspiring with an accomplice to steal nine packages of intestinal medicine, valued at approximately 48,800 yen, from a drugstore in Itabashi Ward at around 4:15 p.m. on November 27, 2025.

While Taguchi typically acted as the ringleader of a tokuryu syndicate, whose members communicate anonymously via smartphone apps, police believe he personally executed the Itabashi heist.

Investigators allege Taguchi stuffed the medicines into a tote bag, casually walked out of the store, and fled in a getaway vehicle waiting near the entrance. He is believed to have subsequently fenced the stolen goods to an unknown buyer.

Taguchi’s name surfaced during the interrogation of two other men — a suspected thief and a getaway driver — who were previously arrested for a separate drugstore heist in Chiba Prefecture.

Police revealed that Taguchi used social media to build his network of thieves. Young people searching for terms like “high hourly wage” found his posts and applied for the illicit jobs.

Once recruited, Taguchi allegedly fed them detailed instructions on which stores to target, the exact dates and times to strike, and the specific merchandise to steal. He then paid his foot soldiers a cut based on the retail value of the fenced goods.

Investigators are now working to unravel the full scale of the syndicate’s operations. Tokyo police suspect Taguchi’s group has been active since June of last year, stealing an estimated 4,000 items— primarily cosmetics and pharmaceuticals — worth approximately 14 million yen from drugstores across 10 prefectures, including Osaka and Aichi.

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东京（TR）——据《朝日新闻》（9月30日）报道，东京警视厅逮捕了一名前相扑选手，他涉嫌策划一个犯罪集团，该集团通过社交媒体招募人员，在日本各地的药店实施大规模盗窃。

警方周三宣布，居住在横滨市荣区的34岁居民田口智也因涉嫌盗窃被捕。

被捕后，田口保留了保持沉默的权利，并告诉调查人员：“我会在咨询律师后再发言。”

据东京警方称，田口被控与同伙合谋，于 2025 年 11 月 27 日下午 4 点 15 分左右，在板桥区的一家药店盗窃了 9 包肠胃药，价值约 48800 日元。

虽然田口通常是特龙犯罪集团的头目，该集团成员通过智能手机应用程序匿名交流，但警方认为他亲自实施了板桥劫案。

调查人员称，田口将药品塞进一个手提袋，若无其事地走出商店，然后乘坐等候在入口附近的接应车辆逃离现场。据信，他随后将赃物销赃给了身份不明的买家。

在审讯另外两名男子（一名涉嫌盗窃者和一名接应司机）时，田口的名字浮出水面。这两名男子此前因在千叶县发生的一起药店抢劫案而被捕。

警方透露，田口利用社交媒体建立他的盗窃网络。一些年轻人搜索“高时薪”之类的关键词，找到他的帖子，并申请这些非法工作。

据称，田口在招募人员后，会向他们详细指示要盯上的商店、具体的作案日期和时间，以及要偷窃的具体商品。然后，他会根据销赃商品的零售价值，向手下支付分成。

调查人员目前正在努力查明该犯罪团伙的全部运作规模。东京警方怀疑田口的团伙自去年6月以来一直活跃，在包括大阪府和爱知府在内的10个县的药店盗窃了约4000件商品，主要为化妆品和药品，价值约1400万日元。

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