Contractor admits faking survey for government as Japan’s crony crisis widens
Fallout from scandal has forced Finance Minister Taro Aso to skip G20 meeting to face parliamentary hearing
A contractor involved in a cut-price state land sale linked to Prime Minister Shinzo Abe has said it falsified a report at the government’s request on buried waste that led to the huge discount, sources close to the matter said on Friday.
The prosecutors are looking into the dubious land deal in 2016 on suspicion of breach of trust on the part of the Finance Ministry, which manages state properties.
The state-owned plot was sold to the school operator Moritomo Gakuen at roughly 14 per cent of its appraisal value, as costs of removing the buried waste were subtracted. The operator planned to build a junior school there, with Akie Abe initially named its honorary president.
Government officials are suspected to have dramatically reduced the land price in light of her role in the school project. She withdrew after the scandal came to light in February last year.