Universal Entertainment Corp, the Japanese company controlled by Kazuo Okada, has filed criminal charges against an unnamed former employee of the company for alleged “professional embezzlement,” according to Reuters.
In a statement, Universal said it has filed criminal charges against “a former representative manager of the Japan branch of Aruze USA Inc.,” a subsidiary of the company, because of the employee’s “unlawful behavior relating to the illegal outgo of $5 million.”
“It has become evident that our group paid $25 million under the misunderstanding that the payment was necessary, mainly due to the lack of appropriate report from the staff in charge of the Philippines project,” Universal said. Earlier this year, Reuters reported that Takafumi Nakano, a former Okada employee, filed a criminal complaint against the billionaire entrepreneur accusing him of ordering bribes to help speed the development of the $2 billion Manila Bay Resorts in the Philippines.
Nakano was the administration division manager of the Japanese branch of Aruze USA. He and two other former Okada employees alleged that the Japanese billionaire paid $40 million in bribes, allegations that caused casino magnate Steve Wynn to cut ties with Okada and forcibly remove him from his board. Okada has repeatedly denied the claims.
The alleged payments have been the subject of separate investigations by the Philippines Department of Justice, the U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation and Nevada gaming regulators.
In a related matter, Tokyo’s high court has rejected Okada’s request that his defamation lawsuit against Wynn Resorts be reinstated. A lower court already threw out the case, saying it should not be handled by a Japanese court, but by one in the United States. In 2012, Wynn issued a press release alleging misconduct by Okada both in the Philippines and South Korea. After ousting him from the company’s board, Wynn cancelled Okada’s nearly 20 percent stake in the casino developer at a 30 percent discount of the market price.
Okada had sought $111 million in damages.
“It is extremely regrettable that the same decision was reached as in the first instance,” Universal said in a statement, adding that is has filed a final appeal and a petition for acceptance of the case by Japan’s Supreme Court.
