OSAKA – An Osaka police lieutenant was sentenced to 18 months in prison Wednesday for fabricating evidence of driving under the influence.
Prosecutors had demanded a 36-month term for Kiyoto Yamashita, 58, who was on the Osaka Prefectural Police force.
Yamashita made up a document that claimed 0.15 mg of alcohol per liter was detected on the breath of a male biker in the city of Sennan in September 2011, without conducting a breath test, the court said.
Presiding Judge Makoto Wada of the Osaka District Court rejected a not-guilty plea entered by Yamashita.
“The defendant, while in police service, trapped someone else into a criminal charge,” Wada said.
“The defendant undermined public trust in a police investigation and badly tainted criminal justice,” the judge said. “The defendant deserves strong blame, and no probation.”