A Japanese court has jailed two business executives and a company employee who used a complex web of bank accounts to launder profits from several illegal online casinos.
The three men used fake documents and crypto investments to help them hide over $26.5 million, the Japanese outlet Tokyo News Media reported.
A branch of the Yokohama District Court handed the trio’s leader, the 45-year-old Hideaki Yoshihara, a 10-year jail sentence after finding him guilty of organized crime and multiple financial law violations.
The court also ordered Yoshihara to pay a fine of over $50,000.
The presiding judge also jailed another employee from the same company, an executive named Kazuki Yoshii (54) and a junior-level employee named Kazuyuki Takahashi (48).
Yoshii will spend the next six years behind bars, with Takahashi jailed for four years.
The judge ordered each to pay around $12,600 in fines.
Prosecutors explained that the trio used “systematic and planned” methods to launder the cash and “complicate the flow of funds.”
Japanese Court: Little Room for Leniency
The casinos in question catered mainly to Japanese citizens.
The men used a series of crypto and real estate investments to throw investigators off their trail.
Prosecutors also showed evidence that the men submitted false documents to the Tokyo Summary Court. These forgeries helped them illegally withdraw over $333,000 from frozen bank accounts.
In sentencing, the judge said the crime was “large-scale, organized, and planned, and requires strict punishment.”
“The defendants did all they could to maximize their own gains,” said the judge. “That leaves the court with very little room for leniency.”
The development comes as the Japanese government searches for new ways to crack down on online casinos.
Operating or accessing an online casino from Japanese territory constitutes a criminal offense in Japan.
However, the popularity of illegal online betting platforms continues to rise in the country. Earlier this month, a leading Japanese NGO revealed that the average amount of debt gamblers incur has ballooned 140% in the past four years to almost $70,000.
Geoblocking: A Solution to Japanese Online Casino Problems?
Tokyo has responded to the rise of illegal casino sites by hunting celebrity online casino users. It has also increased the severity of punishments that courts can impose on gambling law violators.
But the government wants to go a step further and use geoblocking solutions to cut off residents’ access to popular casino platforms.
The Japanese media outlet Denpa Times reported that the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications is soliciting public comments on its plans.
Experts are divided on the matter. Some claim that blocking solutions should be a last resort, as these may infringe on constitutional guarantees of freedom of information and expression.
Currently, Tokyo only approves geoblocking measures for sites that distribute pirated content or child pornography.
The consultation period will end on June 15, 2026.
Meanwhile, work continues on a site that will soon become Japan’s first casino, on an artificial island in Osaka Bay.
The casino is set to open in 2030 and is the brainchild of the casino operator MGM and the Japanese construction giant Orix.
