NIIGATA (TR) – Niigata Prefectural Police have arrested a 32-year-old municipal official in Minamiuonuma City on suspicion of accepting bribes.
According to NHK (Oct. 16), the bribery was in the form of wining and dining in exchange for granting favors over a public works contract.
Tomohiro Yamaguchi, an official in the city’s Industrial Promotion Department, is accused of accepting entertainment and lavish meals worth over 120,000 yen across six occasions from representatives of a local consulting firm.
Also arrested on suspicion of bribery were Suguru Ishikawa, 51, and Konosuke Ichiki, 35, both employees of Telecom Basis, a company that provides operational support for the city’s roadside station.
According to police, Yamaguchi allegedly provided preferential treatment to Telecom Basis regarding an outsourcing contract for the redevelopment of the Michi-no-Eki Minamiuonuma rest area. The alleged wining and dining took place over roughly an 11-month period leading up to April.
Investigators have withheld comment on whether the three suspects have admitted to the allegations.
The city has been pushing forward with a revitalization plan for the roadside station to combat sluggish visitor numbers. The redevelopment project, which features a new facility allowing visitors to experience a traditional yukimuro (snow room), is aiming for a grand reopening in April 2030.
Police are now investigating the exact circumstances of how the contract was awarded to the consulting firm, which had been receiving business commissions for the project since the city drafted its basic framework in fiscal 2023.