Japanese police say they have extended help in at least three cases to those who applied for so-called "shady" part-time jobs that turned out to involve committing criminal acts such as robbery.

The perpetrators in a recent series of robberies in the Tokyo metropolitan area were found to have been recruited through social media posts that promised high pay for easy work. Some suspects told police that recruiters used their personal information to threaten them.

The National Police Agency says in the past week officers have taken steps in at least three cases to protect shady job applicants and their families. One person revealed they had been threatened by recruiters after refusing to commit a crime.

The agency has instructed police forces nationwide to offer appropriate aid to those who request help. This might involve temporarily evacuating those individuals and their families from their homes or bolstering patrols at relevant locations.

The agency is also posting on X the specific tactics recruiters use in advertising shady part-time jobs. Officials are calling on people to avoid applying for jobs advertised online that offer high pay for little work.