It may be a cashless crime, but it isn’t a victimless one.

Working behind the cash register carries a certain amount of responsibility. As the handlers of money, cashiers are the first line of defense in a retailer’s bottom line. It’s a duty that most manage to handle with relative ease, but for some, the temptation to take advantage of their position is just too much to bear.

Such a tragic case occurred in Hiroshima City, where a 19-year-old part-time clerk was arrested for making over 200 million yen (US$1.3M) in non-existent purchases so he could take the bonus points for himself.

According to the police, he made four false cashless purchases at the store where he worked between 5 and 9 June, totaling 109,599,999 yen ($750,000). At a different store in the same shopping center on 29 June, he is also said to have made another purchase of 99,999,999 yen ($685,000), possibly because the price input was limited to eight digits.

▼ And why type a “0” when you can type a “9”?

It wasn’t reported how he was able to pull points from fake cashless purchases so easily but, the amount of points gained was said to be about 950,000 yen ($6,500). Eventually, someone working at the same facility noticed that points were being issued in a strange way, and it was reported to the authorities.

When the police made their arrest, the man admitted to his crimes and now faces charges including computer fraud. Police are also investigating how the man used the points, believing he spent them at restaurants, clothing stores, and other places.

While committing any crime is a cause for a certain degree of shame, readers of the news online were especially disappointed in the complete lack of common sense displayed by this perpetrator.

“Did he seriously think he wouldn’t get caught?”
“He just got too greedy… really too greedy.”
“If only he’d converted his points to gold bars and buried them somewhere. He’d be rich once he cleared the charges.”
“It’s like he found a real-life Pro Action Replay.”
“There was a story just like this in Kochikame.”
“It’s kind of adorable how he just put in as many 9s as possible.”
“Those are some Final Fantasy XVI numbers he’s throwing around.”
“Every time something like this happens, they just put more restrictions on cashless apps and we’re the ones who suffer.”
“He already charged 100 million at his own store, so he decided to go to another store. That’s using your head.”
“Doesn’t he know he needs to be a politician to get away with that kind of stuff.”

In the end, it’s just another case of someone being criminally minded without being criminally skilled, which is always nice in terms of making sure the wrongdoing gets rectified for everyone involved. Personally, I blame the lack of very special episodes of popular sitcoms to teach young people these days the difference between right and wrong.

Source: NHK, TSS, Hachima Kiko
Featured image: Pakotasu
Insert image: Pakotasu
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