Japan ‘grandpa’ crime gang with combined age of 227 given code name ‘G3S’ by police

They are accused of stealing 200 yen (US$1.3) and three bottles of whisky worth a total of 10,000 yen (US$65).

In June, they allegedly robbed another empty house in the same district, taking 24 pieces of jewellery worth one million yen (US$6,400).

Investigators say that the eldest gang member, Umino, was in charge of the stealing, Matsuda was the getaway driver and the youngest, Watanabe, was responsible for dealing with the stolen property.

Their alleged crimes were discovered after the owner of the second house became suspicious and alerted the police.

Investigators tracked down the gang after checking surveillance video footage and discovering that some of the woman’s missing property had been re-sold.

Reports said that the trio of elderly men needed the physical support of police officers while being arrested.

They allegedly said they carried out the crimes to “make a living”.

Police said they were also investigating if the gang was involved in 10 other burglaries in Sapporo and the neighbouring city of Ebetsu.

News of their arrest sparked a fevered discussion on social media.

“They put the youngest one in charge of the easiest job,” one person said.

“The code name ‘G3S’ might not be appropriate but sounds very cool,” said another.

According to Japanese police, the crime rate among the country’s elderly has been rising in recent years.

The proportion of crimes committed by people aged over 65 increased from 2.1 per cent in 1989 to 22 per cent in 2019.

Police have also reported a higher rate of petty theft among that age group, as well as more repeat offenders over the last three decades.

Loneliness and poverty are said to be the two main reasons behind the trend.

Japan is facing the problem of an ageing society. Last year, official data showed 29.1 per cent of the country’s 125 million population were aged over 65, and one in 10 people were 80 or older.