AICHI (TR) – The chairman of sporting goods chain Alpen Co. has resigned after his arrest over the alleged sexual assault of a woman in a hotel in Nagoya last year, reports TV Asahi (Feb. 12).
“I am unable to fulfill my duties as chairman due to the arrest,” 72-year-old Taizo Mizuno said on Friday.
Over a 45-minute period on the afternoon on November 29, Mizuno allegedly jumped atop the woman, 42, and choked her inside a room in the hotel in Naka Ward.
Mizuno also fondled her body and stole the woman’s driver’s license and 100,000 yen in cash. The woman suffered injuries that required three weeks to heal, police said previously.
Also on Friday, Mizuno was sent to prosecutors on suspicion of assault resulting in injury and theft. “We got into a scuffle during an argument,” Mizuno previously said in denying the allegations. “But I didn’t assault her, and I didn’t do anything obscene. I also didn’t steal any money.”
According to police, the incident took place after Mizuno and the victim met at a matchmaking cafe. When the pair arrived at the hotel, they got into a dispute about a sex-related matter. She lodged a complaint with police in December.
Founded in 1972 in Nagoya, the chain boasts about 400 stores nationwide, according to the company’s web site.
