A Japanese lawmaker, Kawai Katsuyuki and his wife, Anri, have been arrested over their allegedly buying votes, media reported on Thursday
TOKYO (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 18th June, 2020) A Japanese lawmaker, Kawai Katsuyuki and his wife, Anri, have been arrested over their allegedly buying votes, media reported on Thursday.
According to the Kyodo news agency, the investigation launched in the fall of 2019, which prompted Kawai Katsuyuki to leave the justice minister post, revealed that the couple had distributed cash to members of local assemblies in the Hiroshima Prefecture in exchange for securing votes for Kawai Anri, who had run in the upper house election in July 2019.
As a result of the election, Anri won a seat in the upper house.
Prosecutors believe that Katsuyuki distributed over $220,000 of campaign funds in cash handouts, while his wife handed out about $14,000 to local politicians.
On Wednesday, the couple left the ruling Liberal Democratic Party to avoid spoiling its reputation.
Katsuyuki Kawai is considered to be a person from the inner circle of Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, and the launch of criminal proceedings against Kawai cannot but affect the reputation of the prime minister himself.
