Overview
- Tokyo’s auditors recommended the Metropolitan Police Department exercise its right of recourse against former Public Security officers Makoto Watanabe, Hayato Miyazono, and Shinsuke Asaka.
- The panel found heavy negligence by Watanabe and Miyazono for not conducting necessary investigative steps and said Asaka acted with intent in illegal interrogations.
- The department was given an April 15, 2026 deadline to decide on pursuing reimbursement, and it said it will respond sincerely.
- The compensation stems from a 2025 Tokyo High Court ruling that deemed the arrests and prosecutions unlawful and led to government payouts to Okawara Kakoki’s executives.
- A wrongfully arrested former executive and his lawyer welcomed the move as a deterrent, noting that individual financial liability for officers in such cases is highly unusual in Japan.