Japanese youths busted for extorting money from doctor over teen prostitution

A 17-year-old high school girl and three youths accused of extorting money from a doctor who allegedly paid the girl for sex - or enjo kosai as it is known locally - were arrested Friday, police said.

Police arrested the four on suspicion of crimes including extortion. The 27-year-old opthalmologist, Shintaro Okui, was also arrested on suspicion of violating the Anti-Child Prostitution and Pornography Law after he informed police about the youths' actions, law enforcers said.

Investigators said the 17-year-old girl conspired with her 18-year-old high school boyfriend and two other friends to extort money from the doctor.

In July this year, they approached him on a road in Tokyo's Shibuya-ku, and started an argument with him, saying, "Why did you touch someone else's girl?" and extorted 130,000 yen and a watch costing about 1 million yen from him, police said.

Also arrested with the 17- and 18-year-old students were a 19-year-old correspondence school student and an unemployed 16-year-old youth. The names of the four have been withheld because they are minors.

Okui is accused of handing the 17-year-old girl 10,000 yen and engaging in indecent acts with her at a hotel in Tokyo's Shinagawa-ku in September 2005. The incident reportedly came to light after Okui went to Shibuya Police Station to inform police about the extortion.

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