A criminal complaint has been submitted on suspicion that political organizations of five factions of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party did not record a total of about ¥40 million worth of income from fundraising parties in political funding reports, according to sources.
The Tokyo District Public Prosecutor's Office's special investigation squad is proceeding with voluntary interviews with clerical staff of the organizations, the sources said Saturday.
The political funds control law obliges political organizations to list in their political funds reports the names of individuals and organizations that offered more than ¥200,000 at one party.
Hiroshi Kamiwaki, professor at Kobe Gakuin University, filed the complaint with the prosecutor's office against the five organizations' chief accountants and others on suspicion of violating the law.
According to the complaint, the five organizations are suspected of failing to list the names of organizations that paid more than ¥200,000 each at events respectively hosted by the five organizations in the four years through 2021, with the unlisted income seen totaling some ¥40 million.
Former Foreign Minister Yoshimasa Hayashi said on a television program on Sunday that the organizations in question should check the facts carefully and take appropriate action.