Commercial equipment purchase scam using the names Izumi Amari (or Kouichi Satoshi) and Hitachi High-Technologies
Date First Reported: August 2015
Primary Name Associated: Izumi Amari
Description of Potential Fraud:
A New Jersey firm notified us that they received an email from the purported Izumi Amari (or Kouichi Satoshi) of Hitachi High-Technologies looking to retain them with regards to making a large commercial purchase.
This appears to be a bad cheque scam that presents as legal matter requiring the assistance of a lawyer. In this scam lawyers will be duped into wiring real funds from their trust accounts after depositing a fake cheque received as payment from the purchaser (who is part of the fraud).
See our Confirmed Fraud Page for more of an explanation of how these frauds work and to see other names associated with it. Our Fraud Fact Sheet lists the red flags of a bogus legal matter that is really a fraud.
Here is the initial contact email sent to the lawyer:
– Email : [email protected]
– Phone :
– Comments : I need a purchase and sale agreement drafted. Respond for more details. [email protected] Sebastian Holms
Replying to the message brought this response:
Thank you for the reply. This is a transaction sales and its commercial.
Below is the details of the sales.
In introducing myself first; I am Izumi Amari, Director of Sales under
Hitachi High-Technologies Inc and I’m representing Smith Lee-Chung
(MIRAI GROUP CO. LTD) in the North America Region.
However, my company is in the process of selling a dredger to a buyer
residing in your area. I need an attorney to help me draft a purchase
and sale agreement for the transaction. I have attached some necessary
details of the dredger for your review, please advise on your rate,
retainer fee and forward to me your retainer agreement to sign,sales
price totaling ( Two Million Nine Hundred and Fifty Thousand Dollars).
You can send us your retainer fees and terms for my company to study,
once we agree with the terms, we will sign them and send it back to you.
I will be looking forward to reading from you soonest.
Find below the name of the proposed buyer for your conflict check.
Franco Peppard
Marine Contractors Jv
4801 South Wood Avenue
Linden, NJ 07036
Tel: 1-888-229-3938
Thank you.
Izumi Amari
Director of Sales
Hitachi High-Technologies Inc
89 Galaxy Blvd,
Etobicoke, ON Canada M9W 6A4
Fax : (226) 838-0993
Tel: 1-800-279-1052
How to handle a real or suspected fraud
If you have been targeted by any of these frauds, please forward any of the emails and supporting documents that you have received to [email protected].
If you suspect you are acting on a matter that might be a fraud, call LAWPRO at 1-800-410-1013 (416-598-5899). We will talk you through the common fraud scenarios we are seeing and help you spot red flags that may indicate you are being duped. This will help you ask appropriate questions of your client to determine if the matter is legitimate or not. If the matter you are acting on turns out to be a fraud and there is a potential claim, we will work with you to prevent the fraud and minimize potential claims costs.
If you have been successfully duped, please immediately notify LAWPRO as there may be a claim against you.
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Fraud Fact SheetMore fraud prevention information and resources are available on the practicePRO Fraud page, including the Fraud Fact Sheet, a handy reference for lawyers and law firm staff that describes the common frauds and the red flags that can help identify them.
August 12, 2015 at 6:17 pm, CRL said:
Once again, this helpful website has assisted my firm in ascertaining the legitimacy of a somewhat suspicious sounding initial inquiry. We receive legitimate inquiries for purchase agreements and it can be hard to tell from a few words whether to respond back or not. Note that the name apparently changes – we received a nearly identical email, except from “Oscar Eriksson” also @cranequipment.com.