Nikko Securities Co.'s head office in Tokyo was raided Sept. 25 by prosecutors and members of the Securities and Exchange Surveillance Committee in connection with the brokerage's suspected illegal payoffs to "sokaiya" corporate extortionist Ryuichi Koike.
The home of Nikko President Kichiro Takao was also searched.
In a related development, informed sources revealed that a Nikko vice president may have been involved in the brokerage's alleged companywide scheme to provide some 14 million yen in payoffs to Koike. The Tokyo District Public Prosecutor's Office and the SESC suspect that a former general affairs section chief, who maintained close ties with Koike, routinely reported the illicit payments to the vice president, the sources said. Neither individual was named.