HOKKAIDO (TR) – Hokkaido Prefectural Police have arrested a former accountant at a temple over the alleged embezzlement of more than 2 million yen, reports Fuji News Network (Jan. 28).
On 25 occasions between December 2016 and June 2018, the suspect, 51, allegedly embezzled 2.55 million yen from a bank account in the name of the temple while he was in charge of accounting.
The embezzlement was uncovered through an internal audit in June 2018. The unnamed suspect, who lives in Asahikawa City, was dismissed six months later.
Police later launched an investigation to learn the flow of the funds. Police arrested the former accountant on suspicion of corporate embezzlement on Thursday.
According to police, the former accountant spent the embezzled funds at hostess clubs and bars. “I wanted money to play,” the former accountant said.
