TOKYO, Feb. 28 (Xinhua) — Japanese promoting large Dentsu Group Inc., 5 different firms, and a high-profile ex-Olympic organizing committee govt, amongst others, have been indicted on Tuesday over alleged bid-rigging linked to the 2021 Tokyo Olympics.
The indictments adopted a legal grievance introduced earlier within the day by Japan’s Fair Trade Commission in opposition to Dentsu and a few people together with Yasuo Mori, former senior official of the Tokyo Games organizing committee, Koji Henmi, former assistant head inside Dentsu Inc., and 5 different individuals.
Japan’s anti-trust watchdog additionally filed a grievance with prosecutors over Hakuhodo Inc., Japan’s second-largest promoting company and rival to Dentsu.
The entities and people indicted are suspected of being concerned in rigging bids for profitable contracts price 43.7 billion yen (319.54 million U.S. {dollars}) pertaining to the planning and operating of Olympic take a look at occasions and competitions.
Their indictments are based mostly on their suspected violation of Japan’s anti-monopoly legislation.
Mori was arrested earlier this month together with three others for his connection to the suspected and expansive bid-rigging operation.
Six firm officers are additionally alleged to have been in cahoots with Mori to rig the bidding course of in 2018, knowledgeable sources additionally mentioned.
Hiroshi Igarashi, Dentsu Group President and CEO, has already advised prosecutors that Dentsu wittingly participated within the bid-rigging for the quadrennial sporting occasion, delayed by a yr as a result of COVID-19 pandemic.
Former govt of the organizing committee Haruyuki Takahashi, in the meantime, who beforehand labored as a senior managing director at Dentsu, has been indicted 4 occasions.
Prosecutors indicted Takahashi for receiving bribes to the tune of round 198 million yen (1.44 million U.S. {dollars}).
In return for the large backhanders, Takahashi orchestrated firms changing into official sponsors of the Games or securing firms the rights to promote official merchandise.
Already tormented by this surprising bribery scandal, the continuing revelations of bid-rigging involving the Olympic committee’s personal and well-known former govt, two of the nation’s finest recognized promoting businesses, a bunch of different firms and prime personnel, have additional and irreversibly tarnished the imaged of the Tokyo Olympic and Paralympic Games in 2021.
“The news of the indictments was deeply regrettable,” mentioned higher home lawmaker Seiko Hashimoto.
Hashimoto, who served as president of the now-defunct organizing committee for the Games from February 2021, mentioned she feels “a great responsibility as the former head of the committee.”