LOCAL authorities detained three Vietnamese women on suspicion of stealing a large amount of merchandise from a UNIQLO clothing store.
The shoplifters were in their 30s and 40s.
They stole 37 bras worth ¥84,700 from a UNIQLO store in Tsurumi Ward in Osaka.
A man believed to be an accomplice and who was outside the store at the time of the crime managed to escape before getting arrested.
Local authorities discovered the perpetrators arrived in Japan on January 25 on short-stay visas and are staying at a private lodging in Osaka.
The incident happened four weeks after another four Vietnamese people were arrested for stealing items at a UNIQLO store in Fukuoka Prefecture earlier this month.
The perpetrators were allegedly part of a Vietnam-based crime ring that stole $132,500 worth of UNIQLO items in Tokyo, Fukuoka, and Kansai and entered Japan to commit shoplifting more than 60 times.
UNIQLO is a popular brand in Vietnam. Vietnamese tourists have targeted the retail store in Japan because there are many self-checkouts in the country.
