The Bureau of Immigration (BI) announced the arrest of a high-profile Japanese fugitive believed to be the leader of a notorious transnational crime syndicate operating in Asia.
Japanese national Ryuji Yoshioka, 54, was apprehended by operatives of the BI’s Fugitive Search Unit (FSU) headed by Rendel Ryan Sy on June 4 in Angeles City, Pampanga, in a coordinated enforcement operation alongside the Philippine Navy and the Armed Forces of the Philippines in Northern Luzon.
The arrest was done pursuant to a summary deportation order issued against the suspect in 2023.
Sy said Yoshioka is the leader of the JP Dragon Syndicate, a criminal organization based in Japan and allegedly responsible for orchestrating large-scale theft and telecom fraud schemes with operational bases in Southeast Asia.
The group has been linked to a network of illicit activities that have victimized countless individuals and laundered millions in criminal proceeds, he added.
According to BI spokesperson Dana Sandoval, an official communications from the Japanese government said Yoshioka is the subject of an active warrant of arrest for theft under the Japanese Penal Code and has been declared a fugitive from justice. His presence in the country, authorities said, posed a serious threat to public safety and national security.
BI records show that Yoshioka last arrived the country in 2022 and has not left since and following his arrest, he underwent usual booking procedures and was turned over to the BI’s warden facility where he will be held until deportation.
