Tokyo police have arrested 17 Vietnamese women for allegedly operating five girls bars without authorization in violation of the adult entertainment business law.
The bars, located in areas including Tokyo's Ueno and Roppongi districts, earned sales totaling about ¥440 million ($2.9 million) between March 2019 and September this year, according to the Metropolitan Police Department.
Of the 17 suspects, 28-year-old company executive Duong Thi Minh Hong and nine others have admitted to the allegations, while the other seven have denied some charges.
A resident of Tokyo's Taito Ward, Duong allegedly made a female employee serve customers over the counter at one of the bars, located in the Yushima district of Tokyo's Bunkyo Ward, in September this year despite not having obtained approval from the authorities under the law.
Girls bars are mainly those where female employees serve alcoholic drinks to customers and chat with them over the counter.
Since 2020, the MPD has received a total of 23 complaints about the five bars, including over their service fees. In response, the police took action such as giving the bars administrative guidance several times, but they failed to take corrective measures.
The bars are also being investigated for illegal employment as some of their workers are in Japan on student visas.
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