Japan’s largest bank apologizes over theft of millions of dollars from safe deposit boxes

Associated Press

TOKYO (AP) — Japan’s biggest bank has apologized after an employee allegedly stole more than 1 billion yen ($6.6 million) from customers’ safe deposit boxes. The bank, MUFG, said Monday that it was investigating and that “several billion yen” might have been taken. The thefts occurred at two Tokyo branches of the bank, from April 2020 until the problem was discovered at the end of October. MUFG Bank’s president and CEO Junichi Hanzawa told reporters the female employee responsible for managing the safe deposit boxes and their keys is suspected of taking advantage of that position to steal from the boxes of about 60 customers.