A woman in Japan has been arrested after allegedly placing more than 2,100 orders for manga-related products online and repeatedly canceling them, causing major losses for a comic book publisher.
According to the Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department, Mayu Yoshida, a 32-year-old restaurant worker, was indicted on suspicion of obstructing a business through fraud.
Prosecutors allege that Yoshida used the online shopping site of manga publisher Shueisha Inc. between July 2024 and May 2025 to order merchandise related to popular manga series “One Piece” and “Naruto” more than 2,100 times without completing payment, repeatedly canceling the orders.
Investigators said Yoshida allegedly used 238 different accounts to place the orders. She reportedly delayed payments until the deadlines passed, causing orders to be automatically canceled, and also selected cash-on-delivery options before refusing to accept the packages upon arrival.
Japanese media reported that the total value of the canceled orders exceeded 4.3 billion yen ($27.2 million).
