A 42-year-old woman from Moosapet fell victim to a scam, losing Rs 29.27 lakh in the belief of a full-time job offer in Japan. She was instructed to ‘invest’ a total of Rs 29,27,780, with the promise of a 40% extra refund on the invested amount.
Her job search began in May 2023 for a Software position as an Accounts and Delivery Manager. In July, she received an email from the Renoir Group about placements in the “Hitachi Group” for the role of a senior accounts manager with onsite full-time employment in Japan.
The email stated that Hitachi would cover expenses such as air tickets, family accommodation, VISA, and medical, once the candidate passed the interview with the Hitachi Group.
On August 1, she had a Skype interview with Kojin Nakakita from Hitachi Automotive. The following day, she received an offer letter along with benefits and an In-Principal Approval (IPA) for employment in Japan. The offer mentioned that the IPA would be approved within 10 working days, following the guidelines of the Ministry of Manpower Japan. She was also asked to pay a Rs 33,780 refundable deposit, as some candidates had withdrawn after receiving the IPA and VISA.
She paid the initial amount and subsequently made additional payments on different occasions for various charges, which she was assured would be refunded with a 40% bonus and relocation once the visa stamping was completed.
A meeting with Hitachi representatives was initially scheduled in Delhi, but it was postponed due to the G20 summit. She was informed that the delay was due to nearly 26 candidates withdrawing from the offer. Later, she was informed that the meeting would be held in Bengaluru in October, but it was once again postponed, citing some candidates’ health issues, including dengue.
She was then informed that the first batch meeting was underway and that she would need to join the second batch, as only a limited number of visa stampings were processed at the Japan Consultancy in Bengaluru on any given day. She was asked to make an additional payment for this meeting.
Growing suspicious, she contacted the Embassy of Japan in Bengaluru and discovered that the Hitachi group was not conducting any recruitment drive. She subsequently filed a complaint with the Cyberabad cybercrime wing, which registered a case and initiated an investigation.
