Overview
- Tokyo Metropolitan Police arrested former Neoreverse representative Keisai Fukuhara (also known as Takazumi Kominato) and a former employee on fraud charges on December 26 and have referred the case to prosecutors.
- Investigators say pawning began in March 2021 soon after watches were first taken in, indicating an intent to defraud rather than operate a rental market.
- About 650 owners filed complaints for roughly 1,700 watches, and police have traced around 2,300 watches to pawn and buy shops nationwide.
- Proceeds total about ¥1.8 billion, with roughly ¥800 million sent to online‑casino accounts and portions used to purchase cryptocurrency, while some funds also covered promised payouts to owners.
- In late 2023 the firm ran gift‑voucher drives while preparing to shut down, posted losses exceeding ¥500 million two months before closing, and the ex-head applied for a passport, took English lessons, and left for Dubai in January 2024 as the investigation now widens to asset tracing and additional victims.