TOKYO (TR) – Hyogo prefectural police on Monday filed charges against a former assistant inspector for leaking information related to an imminent crackdown on an illegal Chinese massage parlor last year, reports the Sankei Shimbun (Dec. 18).
Kazuo Kiyota, 62, who retired in March of last year, allegedly informed the 50-year-old Chinese manager of a salon operating without a proper license in Akashi City on an upcoming raid by law enforcement. The former assistant inspector was slapped with charges related to enabling a criminal to escape and violating the ethics-in-government law.
The Sankei says that Kiyota admitted to the accusations, saying that he utilized the club in return. “It is dreadful that I leaked information that allowed the club to evade a bust for cheap sex,” said Kiyota.
The suspect obtained the information from three other officers, all of whom were reprimanded. A 40-year-old police sergeant received a 10 percent reduction in salary that extends for six months, and a 52-year-old assistant inspector and a 33-year-old head patrol officer were handed warnings. The officers claimed to not have known that the information was being forwarded to the club.
The three officers disclosed the information about the crackdown via telephone or at drinking parties to Kiyota in October of last year. Kiyota then sent an email to the mobile phone of the salon manager informing her of a raid by law enforcement scheduled for November. At the end of October, the manager closed her shop. She then changed its name and restarted operations.
In February of this year, the manager was arrested and fined 500,000 yen for licensing violations under the Law Regulating Adult Entertainment Businesses. Her phone was seized, and investigators discovered the message from Kiyota warning her of the bust.
“Matters that impair confidence in police investigations are regrettable,” said Inspector General Koji Arita in commenting on the matter. “We will endeavor to prevent a re-occurrence of this incident.”