Former Abe Faction Slush Fund Case Opens As Ex-Lawmaker Ohno Pleads Not Guilty

TOKYO, Sep 11 (News On Japan) - The first hearing for former House of Councillors member Ohno Yasumasa and his secretary, charged with violating the Political Funds Control Act over an alleged slush fund tied to Liberal Democratic Party fundraising parties, was held at the Tokyo District Court on September 10th. Ohno pleaded not guilty, saying, "I have never committed a crime."

Prosecutors allege that Ohno conspired with his secretary to omit more than 51 million yen in proceeds from party ticket sales—kickbacks from LDP and former Abe faction political organizations—from revenue and expenditure reports over the five years from 2018.

At the opening session, Ohno maintained his innocence, stating that he "didn't even know whether the revenue and expenditure reports had included the entries" until the matter was reported in the media.

In their opening statement, prosecutors said Ohno was aware of false entries in draft reports but did not instruct staff to make corrections. The defense countered that Ohno was not involved in preparing the reports and argued he was a victim swept up in the slush fund scandal.

Source: テレ東BIZ

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