OSAKA (TR) – The victim in the alleged sexual assault by a former chief prosecutor in Osaka appeared in court this week, reports NHK (Nov. 6).
Kitagawa Kentaro, 67, formerly the chief prosecutor of the Osaka District Public Prosecutors Office, is on trial for allegedly sexually assaulting the victim, a female subordinate prosecutor, at a government-owned residential facility in 2018.
The alleged victim, herself a former prosecutor, took the stand Friday at the Osaka District Court behind a privacy screen shielding her from the gallery and the defendant. She described Kitagawa as a godlike figure towering above her in the hierarchy. “He was a divine presence compared to me, and I held him in awe,” she told the court.
Recounting the night of the alleged assault, the woman said her memory went dark partway through a work social gathering and did not return until after the attack. “I have no memory from the drinking party to what was done to me at the government housing. I was so blackout drunk I could barely move. I thought I was having a terrible dream. My body and my mind were completely frozen,” she said.
The woman said the shock of who had attacked her compounded her trauma. “I was assaulted by the very top of a prosecutor’s office that is supposed to pursue justice. I felt that something impossible had happened,” she testified. She added that she had not even considered reporting the assault at the time, saying she could not bear for her beloved husband to find out.
Kitagawa’s defense team has denied the charges, arguing that the woman was not in a state of incapacity and that the defendant believed he had her consent. The former chief prosecutor is pleading not guilty.
The next hearing is scheduled for November 17, when cross-examination of the woman is expected to continue, according to court officials.
