Universal Entertainment is suing founder and former Chairman Kazuo Okada to recoup the costs of an internal investigation into the billionaire’s alleged misappropriation of corporate funds.
“The company has made a claim for compensation against Mr. Okada for a part of the damage suffered due to his negligence of duty as a board member of the company,” the Japanese machine gaming giant said in a December 1 press release announcing the suit, which was filed four days earlier in Tokyo District Court.
The Tokyo-based machine gaming conglomerate had established an investigative panel earlier this year to probe Okada’s use of company money, saying it had found “three acts of fraudulence” committed “for his own personal benefit,” according to preliminary documents released in June when it was announced that Okada had been removed from Universal’s board of directors.
Universal also is suing Aruze Gaming America, a privately held subsidiary controlled by Okada, for allegedly failing to pay patent licensing fees owed to the company.
Okada also is locked in a legal battle with Wynn Resorts, which ousted him as co-chairman following an internal investigation tied to a bribery scandal in the Philippines, where Universal has developed an integrated resort with a casino in Manila through a Philippines-based subsidiary.
Okada is suing Wynn over the company’s forced redemption of his sizable shareholding in the company in a case that is slated to go to trial in a Nevada state court in Las Vegas next year.
