TOKYO: Two men on the wanted list for “laundering” the proceeds of illegal casinos and fraud were arrested after returning to Japan from Dubai on Tuesday.

The two suspects – ISHIKAWA Sotaro and YAMADA Kosuke – are believed to have left the country in February. They were arrested on arrival at Kansai International Airport after a flight from the United Arab Emirates.

They have been accused of conspiring with FUJII Ryohei, who has been indicted on money-laundering charges, to establish a company in the name of a man in his 20s and opening a corporate account.

Between May and June 2011, they transferred a total of approximately 5.59 million yen, including 2.1 million yen in investment fraud losses, to a different company account, making it impossible to tell that they were criminal proceeds.

The group is said to have set up approximately 4,000 corporate accounts using around 500 paper companies and received payment for undertaking money laundering, receiving at least 70 billion yen in deposits.

The police have also issued an arrest warrant for another suspect, IKEDA Takamasa, who is thought to be one of the leaders of the group, on suspicion of violating the Organized Crime Punishment Act.