Police in Tokyo, Japan have arrested a woman for repeatedly ordering large quantities of merchandise from a popular online store and then cancelling the orders. The accused, named Mayu Yoshida, placed over 2,000 orders on the online store of anime company Shueisha by using fake accounts and aliases.
According to the Japanese news outlet Nippon TV News 24, the 32-year-old woman used over 230 fake accounts to place the orders. Between 2024 and 2025, she ordered Naruto and One Piece merchandise worth between approximately 4.3 billion yen ($2.7 million USD or ₹258 crore INR approximately).
Yoshida cancelled the orders after they were shipped and never paid for them.
The how and the why
According to a report by Sankei Shimbun, the orders were placed using cash on delivery as the payment method. When the orders arrived at Yoshida’s doorstep, she refused to accept them. In some cases, she cancelled the orders after placing them and before they were even shipped.
As a result of her actions, Shueisha is said to have incurred losses of about 7.5 million yen ($47,500), with shipping expenses contributing to the total.
{{/usCountry}}As a result of her actions, Shueisha is said to have incurred losses of about 7.5 million yen ($47,500), with shipping expenses contributing to the total.
{{/usCountry}}(Also read: 'We were not aware': Indian woman caught shoplifting during group trip to Japan)
The Japanese woman admitted to the charges, claiming she was “stressed out from daily life”.
"I love anime in general, so placing these orders satisfied that desire,” she said. She also told investigators that these anime shopping sprees helped her cope with the stress of everyday life.
Her scheme came to light when the company reported the damages to the Kanda Police Station in June 2025. Yoshida was arrested on August 4 this year, following a police investigation.