A mutual aid cooperative run by a political organization of Tatsuo Tomobe, a member of the Upper House, marketed time deposits to pay off his debts, which totaled about 1 billion yen, co-op sources said Jan. 2.The Metropolitan Police Department considers this information key to backing up fraud allegations against 68-year-old Tomobe. The MPD plans to speed up its investigation into the sources of his funds, investigative sources said.According to leaders of the co-op, the Orange Mutual Aid Cooperative, Tomobe lost about 800 million yen through commodity investments and some more by buying foreign bonds. He borrowed about 120 million yen to put up the legally required deposits for declaring his candidacy and that of his party, Nenkinto (Pension Fund Party), in the national electorate for Upper House elections in 1986, 1989 and 1992. He allegedly paid off these debts with funds from Orange Mutual Aid, which is run by Nenkinto, according to the sources.
