The Tokyo District Court has handed down suspended sentences to three former officials of a business suit retailer for their involvement in a bribery scandal related to the Tokyo Olympic and Paralympic Games. This is the first ruling in connection with the scandal.
Aoki Hironori, the former chairman of Aoki Holdings; his younger brother Aoki Takahisa, the former vice chairman; and former company executive Ueda Katsuhisa were sentenced on Friday.
They were standing trial on charges of paying bribes totaling 28 million yen, or about 210,000 dollars, to a former executive of the Tokyo Games organizing committee, Takahashi Haruyuki, allegedly seeking favorable treatment over a Games' sponsorship contract.
In the ruling at the Tokyo District Court, Presiding Judge Yasunaga Kenji sentenced the former chairman to two years and six months in prison, suspended for four years. The former vice chairman received a one-and-a-half-year prison term, suspended for three years, while the former executive got a one-year sentence, suspended for three years.
Yasunaga said the three became aware of Takahashi's enormous influence through dining opportunities involving the former head of the organizing committee, Mori Yoshiro, as well as communication with committee staff. He also said they committed the illicit act in order to earn a substantial profit from helping to organize the Games.
He went on to say that the act was committed as a result of a confluence of interests of the two parties, with the Aoki officials seeking to maximize their firm's profit and Takahashi wanting rewards for giving favors.
He condemned the act for harming the public's trust in fair management of the global events.
Takahashi and 14 other individuals, including those who had been in senior positions at five major firms, have been indicted in the bribery scandal related to the Tokyo Games, which took place in 2021 after a one-year delay.
In response to the ruling, Aoki Holdings said it takes the matter seriously. It vowed to conduct all-out efforts to restore customers' confidence in the company and prevent a recurrence.
Aoki Hironori, the former chairman of Aoki Holdings; his younger brother Aoki Takahisa, the former vice chairman; and former company executive Ueda Katsuhisa were sentenced on Friday.
They were standing trial on charges of paying bribes totaling 28 million yen, or about 210,000 dollars, to a former executive of the Tokyo Games organizing committee, Takahashi Haruyuki, allegedly seeking favorable treatment over a Games' sponsorship contract.
In the ruling at the Tokyo District Court, Presiding Judge Yasunaga Kenji sentenced the former chairman to two years and six months in prison, suspended for four years. The former vice chairman received a one-and-a-half-year prison term, suspended for three years, while the former executive got a one-year sentence, suspended for three years.
Yasunaga said the three became aware of Takahashi's enormous influence through dining opportunities involving the former head of the organizing committee, Mori Yoshiro, as well as communication with committee staff. He also said they committed the illicit act in order to earn a substantial profit from helping to organize the Games.
He went on to say that the act was committed as a result of a confluence of interests of the two parties, with the Aoki officials seeking to maximize their firm's profit and Takahashi wanting rewards for giving favors.
He condemned the act for harming the public's trust in fair management of the global events.
Takahashi and 14 other individuals, including those who had been in senior positions at five major firms, have been indicted in the bribery scandal related to the Tokyo Games, which took place in 2021 after a one-year delay.
In response to the ruling, Aoki Holdings said it takes the matter seriously. It vowed to conduct all-out efforts to restore customers' confidence in the company and prevent a recurrence.
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Summary
Tokyo District Court handed down suspended sentences to three former officials of a business suit retailer for their involvement in the Tokyo Olympic/Paralympic Games bribery scandal. The former chairman, Aoki Hironori, his brother, Aoki Takahisa (former vice chairman), and company executive Ueda
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ID: cd2d9432-4845-4155-b293-588c92aaf14d
Category ID: nhk
URL: https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20230421_19/
Date: April 21, 2023
Created: 2023/04/21 17:09
Updated: 2025/12/09 04:46
Last Read: 2023/04/21 22:33