Architect Haruyasu Kawaguchi thought something was wrong when he looked at the blueprints and concrete pillars of a condominium high-rise in Funabashi, Chiba Prefecture. This was on Nov. 22, 2005, for a TV program, a few days after a major shoddy construction scam was revealed.

The condo, still under construction, was one of dozens of structures using faked quake-resistance data provided by Hidetsugu Aneha, who was at the center of the scandal and was sentenced Tuesday to five years in prison.

"Pillars on the second floor up to the 10th had the same amount of reinforcing rods, and the amount was less than normal. It was unbelievable," because usually the amount differs depending on the floor, said Kawaguchi, a member of Kenchiku G Men, a nonprofit group in Tokyo that provides consultation for people living in defective housing.