TOKYO (TR) – Prosecutors have announced the non-prosecution of a member of a criminal syndicate over the alleged smuggling of stimulant drugs inside coffee bags earlier this year, reports Nippon News Network (Oct. 127).
In April, Akihiro Kato, 60, and an accomplice, also a gang member, allegedly attempted to smuggle 2 kilograms of kakuseizai, or stimulant drugs, concealed inside bags of coffee beans into Japan from Los Angeles.
The drugs have a street value of 120 million yen, police said previously.
On Thursday, prosecutors with the Tokyo District Public Prosecutor’s Office announced the non-prosecution of Kato. The non-prosecution was due to insufficient evidence, the office said.
Upon his arrest in July, Kato denied the allegations. “I do not recall [the matter],” the suspect was quoted by police, who had previously arrested the accomplice.
A customs official discovered the contraband placed inside a suitcase in the possession of Kato and the other suspect upon their arrival on the same flight at Haneda Airport.
