KOCHI (Kyodo) The Kochi Prefectural Police misspent 35 percent of its budget for investigations over the five-year period starting in fiscal 2000, a prefectural audit panel said Wednesday.
The panel checked the 13,800 outlays worth 51.4 million yen at the prefectural force and at Kochi Police Station, of which 18 million yen was found to have been spent inappropriately, it said in a report submitted to Gov. Daijiro Hashimoto and the prefectural assembly.
Police previously denied that money was spent inappropriately.
Of the 51.4 million yen, about 780,000 yen, or 1.5 percent, in 85 cases was found to have been fictitious payments made as supervisors had apparently instructed subordinates to falsify receipts.
Some 690,000 yen, or 1.3 percent, in 115 cases was considered inappropriate spending, where the handwriting on receipts closely resembled that of investigators' payment vouchers, 16.45 million yen, or 32 percent of the budget in 3,178 cases, was deemed to be suspicious, with paid informants' names blacked out on documents in some cases, and receipts not attached to accounting documents.
The panel urged the prefectural public safety commission to conduct a careful investigation of the payments, particularly those made to anonymous informers, and to disclose the results to the public.
The panel began the audit last August at the request of Hashimoto and the prefectural assembly.
It checked documents provided by police and about 1,100 restaurants and shops, and questioned about 360 police officers.
Last May, the Kochi District Court ordered the prefectural police force to disclose how much it had spent on investigations and the ranks of officers who had used the money in one section, partially agreeing to the demands of a citizens' group that suspects such funds has been misused.