TOKYO, June 10 (Jiji Press) – A former manager of Nihon University’s weightlifting club has been arrested for allegedly defrauding scholarship students out of millions of yen under the pretense of collecting tuition and facility fees.
Tokyo police arrested Kenji Nanba, 63, on Tuesday. He is suspected of swindling four scholarship athletes out of 2.05 million yen in December 2022 by falsely claiming the money covered costs from which they were actually exempt.
According to investigative sources, Nanba denies the allegations, claiming he believed the payments were voluntary donations made with the consent of the students’ parents. He also stated that the money was not used for personal gain.
However, police suspect otherwise. They believe Nanba collected approximately 38 million yen from 48 students over the past decade using similar deceptive tactics. The money is said to have been used to purchase business suits, designer bags, and even repaint a luxury BMW.
University officials uncovered the long-running fraud during an unrelated internal investigation. Their findings revealed that Nanba may have been engaging in this scheme for 20 years or more, amassing a total of 53.2 million yen through misrepresentation.
Nihon University has since compensated 58 parents of former student-athletes who were verified victims of the scam.
The investigation is ongoing as authorities work to determine the full extent of Nanba’s actions and financial misuse.
