The president of a solar power-related company, who was arrested and prosecuted by the Tokyo District Public Prosecutors Office, claimed on the 24th that he was subjected to illegal interrogation that violated his right to remain silent and personal rights, demanding 11 million yen in damages from the government in a lawsuit filed with the Tokyo District Court. (Nakayama Taka)
◆ “It amounts to torture by public officials,” seeking damages
Attorney Hiroshi Kawazu (center) and others holding a press conference after the lawsuit on the 24th at the Judicial Press Club in Kasumigaseki, Tokyo
The plaintiff is Naoyuki Ikuta (50), the defendant from “Techno System” (Minato-ku, Tokyo). He was arrested and prosecuted twice in May to July 2021 on suspicion of fraud, having allegedly defrauded financial institutions of over 2.2 billion yen in loans. The date for the initial trial has not yet been set, and he remains in custody at the Tokyo Detention Center.
According to the complaint, the interrogation after his arrest lasted a total of 205 hours over 41 consecutive days, during which he consistently remained silent. He claims that he was told by the prosecutor, “To view the prosecutor’s office as an enemy means you are anti-social” and “You’re not a kindergarten kid” and “You’re 100% guilty, just think rationally” and “You’re the one going to prison,” which he argues infringed his right to remain silent and personal rights, asserting that it “amounts to torture by public officials.”
◆ Plaintiff’s side: “The prosecutor does not understand the purpose of the right to remain silent”
Attorney Hiroshi Kawazu, who held a press conference after the lawsuit, pointed out, “The prosecutor does not understand the purpose of the right to remain silent.” He stated that they had filed complaints with the public prosecutors’ office seven times but there was no improvement, calling it “a problem within the prosecutor’s organization.” The interrogation was recorded and filmed, and the defense plans to request the government to submit this data as evidence.
Takahiro Niikawa, the deputy chief public prosecutor of the Tokyo District Public Prosecutors Office, stated, “I am not aware of the details of the complaint, so I would like to refrain from commenting.”
In a related matter, a former lawyer who was arrested and prosecuted by the Yokohama District Public Prosecutors Office for allegedly being insulted with terms such as “kid” has also filed for damages against the government, and on the 18th, the Tokyo District Court ordered the government to pay 1.1 million yen in compensation.
