The manager of a ramen shop in Japan was arrested after punching himself in the face in an attempt to fraudulently fake a robbery and embezzle company funds.
The main branch of the Kumamoto Ramen shop in Uo, Namekawa Town, is at the center of a viral crime after police arrested the restaurant’s manager on suspicion of obstructing business by fraudulent means.
Reports state that the 36-year-old manager phoned police around 9:40 PM on October 23, 2025, claiming that he’d been attacked by a knife-wielding mugger who made off with 670,000 yen ($4,246 USD) of company cash after punching him in the face.
Saitama prefectural police took his statement and started looking into the theft, but soon found his story suspicious. For one, they noticed that no one matching the assailant’s description had been spotted in the area at the time of the alleged crime on surveillance cameras.
A ramen shop in Japan is at the center of a viral crime.
What’s more, an inspection of the manager’s smartphone revealed that he’d reportedly searched up damning queries like ‘staged robbery victim.’
Ramen shop owner punches self in face to fake robbery
He was arrested on January 29, 2026, for making a false emergency call and obstructing police operations. He later admitted to faking the entire ordeal, saying he’d planned on using the 670K yen to cover his living expenses and fund trips to the pachinko parlor.
He also revealed that he’d punched himself in the face to make the ‘crime’ seem more realistic and sell the story to police.
The phony robbery has gone viral on Japanese social media platforms, leaving users laughing at the manager’s somewhat humorous attempt at faking the incident.
Unsplash.com: Kindel MediaThe Ramen shop owner admitted he’d faked the entire thing and even punched himself to sell the story.
There’s a silver lining to the situation, though, as commenters have now started looking into the ramen shop as a possible dining option, curious to try it out after its ex-manager’s infamous scandal put it in the limelight.
This is the latest viral story to come from Japan after a city in the country put a stop to its annual cherry blossom viewing festival, claiming that an influx of tourists were entering residents’ homes without permission and even relieving themselves on their lawns due to overcrowding.
