UnionPay cards used to steal $9.15 billion
The Metropolitan Police Department has arrested four Taiwan men who withdrew some of the money on suspicion of theft and other charges, and is investigating their alleged involvement in the illegal withdrawals. The MPD is attempting to clarify how the money was stolen, and suspects an overseas criminal organization could be behind the wrongdoing.
The MPD has confiscated about 200 cards, which were fake or issued in the names of other persons, from the belongings of the four Taiwan men.
According to sources close to the investigation, three of the arrested men used forged UnionPay cards and one used cards issued under other people’s names. They are suspected of withdrawing cash from ATMs operated by the Bank of Tokyo-Mitsubishi UFJ, Ltd., Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corp. and Mizuho Bank, Ltd. They reportedly used the debit card function that enables cash to be deducted instantly from a bank account, and withdrew money from savings in bank accounts in China.
The illegal withdrawals using UnionPay cards were revealed during a reinvestigation by police authorities and financial institutions into ATM transactions made using overseas cards. This was undertaken after an incident in May in which counterfeit credit cards from a South African bank were used to simultaneously withdraw at least ¥1.8 billion from ATMs at convenience stores in 17 prefectures.
According to sources, the MPD launched an investigation after UnionPay-related organizations in Japan alerted police authorities to losses sustained through illegal withdrawals.
UnionPay cards can also be used at other Japanese financial institutions, so the police are trying to confirm whether more money has been withdrawn.
The illegal withdrawals were made intermittently from this spring. The three megabanks confirmed at least ¥1 billion has been taken. In most cases, a debit card function was used to withdraw cash from Chinese bank accounts.
According to the sources, there are reports that some of these accounts were used for holding money acquired through fraud in China. The MPD suspects the cash was withdrawn in Japan so overseas criminal organizations could evade an investigation by Chinese authorities.
UnionPay cards feature a magnetic strip and an IC chip that is difficult to forge. It appears that cards with forged magnetic strips were used in the ATMs in Japan.
Police have arrested more than 100 people, including people who withdrew money and members of organized crime groups, in connection with the scam involving the fake South African bank cards. Police are also continuing to investigate whether these crime groups played an organizing role in the mass withdrawals.
UnionPay cardA card that can use the bank card services of China UnionPay, a Chinese interbank network whose establishment was led by the People’s Bank of China. The card has debit card and credit card functions. About 5.8 billion UnionPay cards have been issued, and they can be used in 160 countries and territories. The cards can be used also at about 80,000 ATMs in Japan, including those at megabanks and convenience stores.