Dylan Bettencourt
A Japanese man was stunned to see R5.8 million in his account. But when he found out it was his town’s Covid-19 fund, he disappeared.
The Japanese town of Abu was enraged that the funds were mistakenly sent to a local man, who fled with the money rather than notifying the authorities.
Reports suggest that the man transferred small amounts of the money into different accounts before disappearing, according to Business Insider.
The money was meant to aid around 436 households that had been affected by Covid-19.
When the 24-year-old was questioned about the whereabouts of the money, he said all the money was gone.
“All the funds had been transferred to an account at another financial institution,” he told local publication SoraNews24.
“I cannot return the money back to the original account. I will make amends for my crime.”
A lawsuit was filed against the suspect on 12 May but he has since moved out of his home and has not been found by the local police.
The mistake was made as his name was on top of the list of supposed recipients.
The man in question was described as a “good boy” who had never got in trouble, even paying his monthly rent for May before disappearing.
His lawyer however said the man gambled all the money away on his smartphone.
“I don’t currently have the money and I don’t have anything with property value at hand. It’s actually difficult to return it,” the lawyer quoted him as saying, according to The Asahi Shimbun.
The Abu municipal government is suing the suspect for R6 million, which includes legal fees.
Mayor Norihiko Hanada told residents he is “deeply sorry” for the mistake and that his office “will do our utmost to take back the large amount of public money”.
The town has since handed out another R5.8 million to affected households, each recipient getting R12,200.
Image source: @BusinessInsider
