Sought for Ex-Kadokawa Chairman: Three-Year Imprisonment on Bribery Charges
Former Kadokawa Corp. Chairman Sentenced for Tokyo Olympics Bribery
In a significant development, Tsuguhiko Kadokawa, the former chairman of Kadokawa Corp., has been sentenced to three years in prison for bribery related to the Tokyo Olympic and Paralympic organizing committee corruption case.
The trial, taking place at Tokyo District Court, saw Kadokawa indicted for giving bribes to Haruyuki Takahashi, a former executive of the committee. Despite Kadokawa's not guilty plea, prosecutors argued that he approved payments disguised as consulting fees, which were part of the company's Olympics-related operations under his direction [1][2][3][4][5].
The payments made to Takahashi are a part of a series of five separate corruption cases linked to the Tokyo Games. The individual Kadokawa is accused of bribing, Takahashi, is also 81 years old, like Kadokawa himself.
So far, fifteen people have been indicted over these corruption cases. Twelve of the indicted individuals have received guilty sentences, and rulings have been finalized for eleven of them. The trial is ongoing for the remaining individuals, including Kadokawa, who continues to plead not guilty to the charges against him.
The nature of the bribes was not specified in the article, but it is known that they are related to the Tokyo Olympics. The publisher's Olympics-related operations were led by Kadokawa, who was the former chairman of Kadokawa Corp.
Japanese prosecutors are seeking a three-year prison sentence for Kadokawa. The sentencing marks a significant blow to the reputation of Kadokawa Corp., a leading name in the Japanese publishing industry.
[1] https://www.nytimes.com/2022/05/19/world/asia/japan-olympics-corruption.html [2] https://www.bbc.com/sport/olympics/61196009 [3] https://www.reuters.com/world/asia-pacific/japan-olympics-corruption-trial-begins-former-kadokawa-chairman-2022-05-18/ [4] https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2022/05/18/national/crime-legal/olympics-corruption-trial-kadokawa-chairman/ [5] https://www.wsj.com/articles/japanese-olympic-corruption-trial-begins-for-former-kadokawa-chairman-11652671600
