Corruption allegations against a member of the Tokyo Olympics organizing committee widened on Tuesday when Japanese prosecutors re-arrested Haruyuki Takahashi in a case involving alleged payments made to a publisher who became a sponsor of the Games.
The latest allegations are that the former Games organizing committee member received C$709,000 from publishing company Kadokawa, according to Tokyo district prosecutors. The sponsorship allowed Kadokawa, who also makes movies and games, to publish programs and other books related to the Tokyo Olympics.
Two Kadokawa officials, Toshiyuki Yoshihara and Kyoji Maniwa, who allegedly deposited the money, were also arrested.
Takahashi has been in custody since his arrest last month and is suspected of receiving bribes from clothing manufacturer Aoki Holdings. He was formally charged on Tuesday with accepting C$473,000 in bribes from the company.
Bribes
Three Aoki officials were also charged with paying bribes. The money was allegedly deposited into a bank account at Takahashi’s company between October 2017 and March this year, for the purpose of Aoki becoming an Olympic sponsor and manufacturing licensed products, prosecutors said.
Aoki, which produces clothes for graduates to wear for job interviews, was a surprising choice to supply clothing for Japan’s Olympic team, when other nations wore big brands.
Kazumasa Fukami, the head of a consulting firm, was arrested on suspicion of helping Takahashi receive the bribes.
Takahashi, a former executive at advertising company Dentsu, had a huge hand in organizing Olympic sponsorships.
On Monday, Tokyo prosecutors raided the offices of Daiko Advertising in Osaka and Tokyo as part of the Olympics-related corruption probe. There have been no arrests in the Daiko case.
Horizon 2030
The scandal is likely a setback for Japan, which is trying to secure the 2030 Winter Olympics in Sapporo.
Tokyo hosted the 2020 Olympics and Paralympics, postponed to summer 2021 with great fanfare, and came under fire over the staggering costs. The event was effectively postponed for a year, and took place without an audience due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The official cost of the Tokyo Games is estimated at US$13 billion, mostly public money.
The scandal is likely a setback for Japan, which is trying to secure the 2030 Winter Olympics in Sapporo