TOKYO (TR) – A courtroom right here has handed a suspended jail time period to a former inspector with the Tokyo Metropolitan Police for leaking investigative info to intercourse scouting group Natural, which is Japan’s largest, reviews Jiji Press (Mar. 25).
At the Tokyo District Court on Wednesday, presiding decide Ryo Terao handed Daisuke Jimbo, 43, previously with the Organized Crime Countermeasures Division, a jail time period of 18 months, suspended for 3 years. The prosecution had sought an 18-month time period.
Jinbo, who was accused of violating the Local Public Service Act, despatched photos from cameras put in for investigative functions and lists of filming places to people related to Natural between April and July 2025.
In handing down the ruling, decide Terao identified that the leakage of extremely confidential investigative info “significantly undermines public trust in the fairness of police officers’ duties.”
Judge Terao added that Natural is a large-scale and unlawful scouting group, the magnitude of its social influence can’t be neglected. “He cannot escape severe condemnation,” the decide mentioned.
Contact members
According to the Yomiuri Shimbun (Mar. 25), Jimbo joined the Tokyo Metropolitan Police in 2004. Around October 2023, he started investigating Natural. While dealing with interrogations of these concerned, he additionally reportedly made contact with the group’s high chief, Hiroaki Obata, who was arrested earlier this 12 months.
Around February 2024, he obtained a communication app developed by Natural and used solely by its members. He used this extremely nameless app, which allowed for distant deletion of saved information, to contact members.
During the trial, Jinbo admitted to the fees. “It is true that I leaked information. I will not dispute it at all,” he mentioned. He additionally said, “I was desperate and crossed the line due to dissatisfaction with the work environment, including harassment from my superiors.”
However, he said that he “cannot discuss specific details about the perpetrators because of the possibility of retaliation.” He added that he “did not receive any monetary or other compensation.”
In explaining his motive, he said, “I wanted to get close to them, gain their trust, and obtain information.” He emphasised his investigative achievements, stating that info obtained by the app typically led to arrests.
In April 2025, Jinbo was faraway from investigating Natural after it was realized he was engaged in an extramarital affair. The alleged leak of the places and pictures from the surveillance cameras through the app occurred between that month and July. The cameras had been put in by the Tokyo Metropolitan Police to watch the actions of the Natural group, and if their places had been revealed, they might transfer their base of operations, making arrests harder.
“Like a spy”
In its closing argument, the prosecution said that “while engaged in the investigation of Natural, he became involved and essentially acted like a spy.” It went to say that “this severely undermines public trust in the police.”
In response, the protection requested a suspended time period, arguing that “he had been dismissed from his position as a police officer and had lost his status, thus facing social sanctions.”