Japanese Lawmaker Indicted For Receiving Bribes

A Japanese lower house lawmaker has been indicted for receiving bribes from a wind power firm in exchange for using his influence in favor of the company, as reported by Mainichi Japan.

Masatoshi Akimoto, 48, who left the ruling Liberal Democratic Party after the incident came to light, held the position of secretary-general of an LDP parliamentary association for the promotion of renewable energies. I Photo: 内閣官房内閣広報室

Masatoshi Akimoto, 48, who left the ruling Liberal Democratic Party after the incident came to light, held the position of secretary-general of an LDP parliamentary association for the promotion of renewable energies.

He advocated for the enactment of a law on utilizing offshore areas for renewable power generation, which came into force in April 2019.

The indictment stated that Akimoto received a total of 70 million yen ($470,000) from Masayuki Tsukawaki, a 64-year-old former president of Japan Wind Development Co., which was bidding for offshore wind power projects in Aomori Prefecture.

This payment was in return for Akimoto asking certain questions at the Diet.

On the same day, prosecutors also indicted Tsukawaki, without detaining him, for providing bribes to Akimoto. In a separate case, they indicted Akimoto for his alleged involvement in a 2 million yen fraud related to COVID-19 financial relief for businesses.

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