Japanese mother and son busted for huge hotel loyalty scam
A Japanese mother and son were arrested for a hotel loyalty scam reportedly costing multiple hotels up to $1 million in lost revenue.
Yukiko Kishida, 51, and son Yukihiro, 31 were arrested by Kyoto police for booking rooms at three hotels but were no-shows.
They then claimed reward points on the fake bookings.
However local media reported the ruse was much more extensive.
Following inquiries, they allegedly made more than 3,200 no-show hotel cancellations over the duration of one year and claimed the points.
The value of the points fraudulently earned was about $22,000.
Using fake names, they created multiple accounts on booking platform Ikyu.com.
They then made numerous bookings for same-day check in but never showed up.
If a hotel forgets to record a booking as a no show cancellation, points are still awarded.
The site awards up to 20% back in reward points on same-day bookings.
They then used the points to stay in hotels, according to sources familiar with the investigation.
TravelMole Editorial Team
Editor for TravelMole North America and Asia pacific regions. Ray is a highly experienced (15+ years) skilled journalist and editor predominantly in travel, hospitality and lifestyle working with a huge number of major market-leading brands. He has also cover in-depth news, interviews and features in general business, finance, tech and geopolitical issues for a select few major news outlets and publishers.
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