Ex-Tokyo Games exec Takahashi arrested again over fresh bribery allegations

The Yomiuri Shimbun

13:14 JST, September 27, 2022

A former executive board member of the Tokyo Olympic and Paralympic organizing committee was arrested again on Tuesday over fresh bribery allegations linked to an advertising agency.

The special investigation squad of the Tokyo District Public Prosecutors Office believes Daiko Advertising Inc. paid about ¥14 million to a company run by an acquaintance of the former Games executive Haruyuki Takahashi, who in turn is alleged to have helped the company secure a deal linked to the Tokyo Olympics and Paralympics.

The major advertising agency Dentsu Inc. was responsible for seeking sponsors for Tokyo 2020 and Dentsu recommissioned part of the solicitation operations to Daiko. According to sources, Takahashi allegedly asked Dentsu to select the company to fulfill the role at the request of Daiko.

After Daiko was selected, the company is alleged to have paid a total of about ¥14 million from January 2019 to January 2020 to Commons2 Inc., a consulting firm run by Kazumasa Fukami, 73, an acquaintance of Takahashi.

Takahashi was arrested on suspicion of receiving bribes of ¥51 million from business clothing retailer Aoki Holdings Inc. Takahashi was also arrested on suspicion of conspiring with Fukami to receive bribes totaling about ¥76 million from the major publisher Kadokawa Corp.