OSAKA (TR) – Police here have arrested a 48-year-old municipal official in Daito City on suspicion of accepting bribes in the form of home appliances in exchange for funneling dozens of no-bid public contracts to a local company, reports the Sankei Shimbun (June 17).
Kimihiko Sano, a chief examiner in the city’s municipal housing management division, is accused of receiving five electrical appliances from Masaki Nitta, the 35-year-old representative director of Daito-based M.N. Corporation. In return, Sano allegedly provided the firm with preferential treatment in city-commissioned projects.
Nitta has also been arrested on suspicion of bribery. On the afternoon of June 17, Osaka Prefectural Police raided Daito City Hall to uncover the full extent of the relationship between the two men.
According to city officials, Sano awarded M.N. Corporation 55 discretionary contracts over a two-year period after assuming his current role. Prior to his appointment, the city had no track record of doing business with the firm. The contracts funneled to the company were collectively worth approximately 21.17 million yen.
To bypass standard competitive bidding, Sano allegedly requested estimates exclusively from Nitta’s company. He justified the single-bidder process to the city by claiming the projects were “issues directly linked to daily life that require prompt execution.”
Daito Mayor Nobuko Osaka issued a public apology in the wake of the arrests.
“I apologize for this situation, which has damaged public trust in our municipal administration,” the mayor said. She indicated that the city will implement strict preventative measures, including mandating multiple estimates even for minor discretionary contracts.
