TOKYO (Kyodo) -- Seven Chinese nationals, including university students, have been arrested on suspicion of fraud after allegedly buying Apple Inc.'s laptops using student discounts in Tokyo for resale purposes, police said Wednesday.

One of the seven, Zhao Li, a 51-year-old residing in Saitama Prefecture, is believed to have ties to the Chinese Dragon, the police said, referring to a gang formed primarily by second- and third-generation descendants of Japanese orphans left behind in China when Japan withdrew from the country at the end of World War II.

The Chinese nationals, including graduate students, allegedly conspired to purchase 11 laptops worth 3.13 million yen ($19,810) in May 2024 at a store in Tokyo's Ginza district by using a student discount program while concealing their intent to resell the devices.

Apple's student discount program prohibits resale within one year of purchase.

The police suspect that the purchased items may have been resold overseas.

Between February and August 2024, the group is believed to have purchased Apple products worth around 130 million yen using similar methods at six stores in Tokyo and nearby Kanagawa Prefecture, according to the police.