Yuji Suzuki, a 56-year old employee of the Japanese Ministry of the Environment in Fukushima Prefecture in charge of overseeing decontamination activities after the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear disaster was arrested on charges of alleged bribery along with the former president of the construction firm that provided the bribe.
It has been reported that Suzuki received transportation, accommodations, meals and entertainment at fancy restaurants and seedy nightclubs, racking up a bill of several hundred thousand yen.
The federal funding for decontamination in Fukushima Prefecture has turned into a good way for companies to cash in on the nuclear disaster. Mikio Kosugi, the former president of the Toyama Prefecture construction company hoped that the bribe would help him win more contracts and funding from the government.
The Japanese Ministry of the Environment has admitted that the scandal could corrode public trust in the decontamination efforts, but that the agency will try to win back the trust of the nation.
Source: NHK
Source: Kyodo