A Japanese man was recently arrested in Tokyo after a local hotel filed a police complaint, alleging that he made 580 fake reservations that prevented the property from selling rooms normally and seriously hurt its revenue.
According to Japan’s public broadcaster NHK, he booked 258 rooms in a single day, with a total value of nearly $49,000. Police said Sanuki used false names to make the bookings, and more than 580 records of fake reservations were found on his smartphone and other storage devices. The total value of those reservations exceeded 17 million yen, or about $114,000. The bookings were made using fake names and different email addresses, and Sanuki reportedly remained silent during questioning. In Japan, hotel bookings generally do not require credit card information, and guests can pay upon arrival using local payment methods. While convenient, that also leaves the door open to abuse and fraud.
