Japan city accused of faking 2,000 residents

Summary

• TOKYO: Authorities in Japan are investigating officials in the central city of Toyama over allegations that more than 2,000 people were falsely added to the city’s population in the latest national census.
• Police searched Toyama City Hall after the central government filed a criminal complaint over suspected manipulation of census figures.
• Population figures from the census are used to determine the amount of funding allocated to local governments by the central government.

AI Generated Summary

TOKYO: Authorities in Japan are investigating officials in the central city of Toyama over allegations that more than 2,000 people were falsely added to the city’s population in the latest national census.

Police searched Toyama City Hall after the central government filed a criminal complaint over suspected manipulation of census figures. The investigation centres on claims that officials altered household information to include residents who did not exist.