The Tokyo District Court has assigned the first trial date of Masahiko Konno and Katsunori Nakazato – the former advisors to Chinese gaming company 500.com allegedly involved in a bribery scandal – for 26 August.
According to the indictment, both defendants provided bribes worth approximately JPY7.6 million to House of Representatives member Tsukasa Akimoto, including cash and travel expenses for a trip to Hokkaido between September 2017 and February 2018 when Akimoto was in charge of IR business as Senior Vice Minister of the Cabinet. Konno has also been charged with violating the Foreign Exchange Law, allegedly bringing JPY 15 million in cash into Japan.
As previously reported by Inside Asian Gaming, 500.com has been accused of bribing Akimoto and other members of the lower house in its pursuit of a license to develop an IR in either Hokkaido or Okinawa. Both locations have since withdrawn from Japan’s IR race.
The Tokyo District Court also set 26 August as the date of the first trial of Kimihito Kamori, former president of hospitality firm Kamori Kanko in Sapporo. Kamori has been charged with conspiracy to supply travel expenses for the Hokkaido trip.
The Tokyo District Public Prosecutors Office also arrested three company executives on 4 August for alleged violation of Japan’s Act on Punishment of Organized Crimes and Control of Crime Proceeds after they offered cash to Konno and Nakazato in exchange for giving false testimony at the hearing.
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