A former diplomat was sentenced to 12 years in prison Thursday for embezzling public funds and setting fire to a Japanese embassy in Africa to conceal the deed.
Shinya Yamada, 31, embezzled around ¥20 million between September 2012 and June 2013 when serving at the embassy in the Democratic Republic of Congo and burned 220 sq. meters of the embassy in June last year, the Tokyo District Court ruled.
Presiding Judge Tomomi Nakazato said Yamada frequented casinos due to the stress of work and living abroad alone, and embezzled public funds for his gambling.