Olympics-Japan prosecutors investigate Olympic sponsor payments to executive-media
20/07/2022 10:16
TOKYO, July 20 (Reuters) - Tokyo prosecutors are
investigating payments from clothing retailer AOKI Holdings, an
Olympic sponsor firm, to a company run by a former board member
of the Tokyo 2020 Organising Committee, Japanese media reported
on Wednesday.
The Yomiuri daily said the investigation is looking at
whether payments of at least 45 million yen ($325,544) between
2017 and 2021 to a company run by Haruyuki Takahashi violated a
law that prohibits public servants from taking money in relation
to their positions.
Board members of the organising committee were considered as
quasi-public servants.
Reuters could not establish contact details for Takahashi, a
former executive of advertising agency Dentsu Inc.
However, Takahashi was quoted by the Nikkei business daily
saying his company received fees for providing sports-related
consulting to AOKI. As a member of the board, he was not
involved in matters that concerned anyone's financial interests,
including the sale of official licensed products, he told the
newspaper.
The Tokyo District Public Prosecutors Office said it would
not comment on an individual case.
AOKI said the media reports were not based on anything the
company had announced, and declined to comment further.
As an "official supporter" for the Tokyo Games, AOKI
provided referees' uniforms, and sold licensed products such as
jackets with Olympic emblems.
Reuters reported in March 2020 that Takahashi was paid more
than $8 million in 2013 and 2014 by the Tokyo Olympic bid
committee for undisclosed activities. At the time, he told
Reuters his work included lobbying International Olympic
Committee members and said there was nothing improper with the
payments he received or the way in which he used the money.
Later in 2020, International Olympic Committee chief Thomas
Bach said no IOC rules had been infringed by the payments.
($1=138.23 yen)
(Reporting by Kiyoshi Takenaka; Editing by Neil Fullick)
((kiyoshi.takenaka@thomsonreuters.com; +81 3 4563 2788;))