Japan’s Supreme Court upholds four-year prison term and fine for ex-lawmaker Tsukasa Akimoto in integrated resort bribery scandal
The Supreme Court of Japan has confirmed a four-year prison term for a former lawmaker embroiled in a bribery scandal linked to integrated resort (IR) licensing.
Reports indicate that the 53-year-old ex-politician in the central government’s House of Representatives under the Liberal Democratic Party, Tsukasa Akimoto, failed to have his sentence reduced by the country’s highest court this week.
Guilty of Receiving Illicit Gifts
Akimoto’s legal troubles date back to 2019 when he was found guilty of receiving illicit gifts worth JPY7.6 million ($48,000), from 500.com, a Chinese online gaming operator looking to operate an IR in the country.
The bribe, received between 2017 and 2018, included cash, travel expenses, and hotel accommodations.
At the time, 500.com was one of the two companies authorized by China’s Ministry of Finance to offer online lottery and sports betting services.
In a related twist, 500.com, now known as Bit Mining Ltd., was recently indicted in the United States.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of New Jersey alleges that the company “directed consultants to pay bribes to Japanese government officials to win a bid to open a large resort in Japan.”
The bribery efforts ultimately failed. While 500.com had planned to obtain an IR license to develop a casino in either Hokkaido or Okinawa, Japan’s slow-moving gaming regulations and complicated bidding process led to many proposals losing momentum and eventually failing, including theirs.
This week’s ruling by the Supreme Court supports the Tokyo High Court’s 2021 judgment, which sentenced Akimoto to four years behind bars and imposed a fine of JPY7.6 million ($48,284).
Akimoto’s Former Policy Secretary Appeal, Also Rejected
In a decision issued on Tuesday, the First Petty Bench of the top court, led by Justice Masaaki Oka, also dismissed an appeal by 46-year-old Akihiro Toyoshima, a former policy secretary to Akimoto.
The court hence upheld his two-year prison sentence, suspended for four years, in connection with the same case.
The Tokyo District Court and Tokyo High Court had previously ruled that Akimoto, who was serving as the state minister overseeing IR-related affairs at the time, conspired with Toyoshima to accept the bribes.
While out on bail in 2020, Akimoto offered incentives to two former advisers of the Chinese company to provide false testimony in court that would benefit his defense.
One IR Project in Six Years
Although Japan’s 2018 IR legislation allowed up to three casinos, only one project has moved forward in the subsequent six years.
That lone development is spearheaded by MGM Resorts International and Japan’s Orix Corporation.
The $8 billion IR, set on Osaka’s Yumeshima Island, is projected to open by the end of 2030.
In a press release announcing the collaboration in September 2023, MGM Resorts’ chief executive officer and president, Bill Hornbuckle, called it “a significant moment” for the company.
He also spoke about executing their vision, “in partnership with ORIX, to build a world-class integrated resort in Osaka,” while staying “passionately committed” to bringing “MGM’s ‘wow’ DNA from Las Vegas to Osaka” via a resort that will bring “great pride” to the community.
In March 2022, Bally’s Corporation also revealed plans for a new IR in Fukuoka.
