Tokyo police have arrested a group of seven, including a 24-year-old official of the Tokyo Regional Taxation Bureau, on fraud charges related to a government COVID-19 relief program, investigative sources said Thursday.
The Metropolitan Police Department believes the group swindled the government out of as much as ¥200 million in benefits aimed at helping smaller businesses that suffered sharp revenue declines due to the pandemic, by filing false applications in place of some 200 people, according to the sources.
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