Malaysian police say they have arrested seven Japanese nationals on suspicion of involvement in telephone scams.
The police said on Monday that they raided an apartment in the capital Kuala Lumpur earlier this month, after receiving information on a phone scam group based in the country.
They said the arrested people are all Japanese men in their 20s through 40s.
The police added that they have confiscated multiple cell phones and other equipment.
They said the men are suspected of having swindled money from victims in Japan by making fraudulent calls to them.
The suspects allegedly pretended to be people related to the banking industry.
Similar fraud syndicates involving Japanese nationals have recently been cracked down on in Cambodia and Thailand.