University of Tokyo Professor Arrested over Bribery Tied to Joint Research

Shinichi Sato

Jiji Press

12:16 JST, January 25, 2026

TOKYO (Jiji Press) — Police on Saturday arrested a 62-year-old professor at the University of Tokyo’s Graduate School of Medicine on suspicion of accepting bribes related to a joint research project.

Shinichi Sato was arrested by the Metropolitan Police Department for allegedly receiving entertainment worth some ¥1.8 million across about 30 sessions at high-end clubs and brothels between March 2023 and around August 2024, in return for providing favors regarding matters related to a joint research project on plant cannabinoids found in cannabis plants, which began in April 2023.

The University of Tokyo operates projects that leverage funding from private companies and other entities to conduct joint research on issues of significant public importance.

Whether Sato has admitted to the charges has not been disclosed.

The MPD is also conducting voluntary investigations on a 52-year-old representative of the association, believed to have provided the bribes, as well as a 46-year-old former specially appointed associate professor at the graduate school who was involved in the joint research and allegedly received entertainment with Sato.

According to the MPD division and other sources, the association applied with the university in September 2022 for a joint research project to investigate the efficacy of cannabinoids for skin diseases and other conditions.

Sato was effectively in a position to determine the research direction and content of the project. In February 2023, just before the project began, he dined with the association representative alongside the former specially appointed associate professor. After having his meal expenses covered at that time, Sato began demanding entertainment about twice a month. It is believed that starting around April of the following year, he also began accepting entertainment at brothels.