Society

Tokyo prosecutors seek to question Abe in cherry blossom party scandal

Dec 04 (Japan Times) - Tokyo prosecutors have asked former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe to appear for voluntary questioning about the dinner parties his political group held for supporters, sources close to the matter said Thursday.

Abe told reporters in the Diet the same day that he had no knowledge of such a request.

Prosecutors have decided to build a case against Abe's state-paid secretary for allegedly not reporting part of the costs of the dinner parties, the sources said.

The secretary heads a group of Abe's supporters that hosted the dinner functions on the eve of the government-sponsored annual cherry blossom-viewing parties, according to the sources.

The total bills for the parties held at two hotels in Tokyo exceeded Â¥20 million over a five-year period through last year, far higher than the amount collected from attendees â€” many of whom were voters in Abe's constituency in Yamaguchi Prefecture.

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