Kazuo Okada off the hook in $7M fraud case over ‘defective’ LED fixtures

Justice authorities in the Philippines have cleared Japanese casino magnate Kazuo Okada, along with several others, in the $7 million fraud case over the installation of LED fixtures in Okada Manila.

The Department of Justice (DOJ) released a 10-page decision affirming the dismissal of the fraud case against Okada, former Okada Manila CEO Kengo Takeda, Aruze Philippines Manufacturing Inc. and its president, Tetsuya Yokota, local media outlets reported.

In the resolution, dated Dec. 21, 2018, Assistant State Prosecutor Alejandro Daguiso said Tiger Resort Leisure and Entertainment (TRLEI) “failed to prove” the respondents conspired. The prosecutors noted that, “From the records, there appears to be no concrete evidence at all of respondents’ alleged conspiracy and representations that brought about the contract in question.”

Last year, TRLEI, the Philippine unit of Japan-listed gaming conglomerate Universal Entertainment Corp., lodged twin fraud and perjury cases against Okada—one of which was linked to the casino mogul’s decision to award a $7 million supply contract for the installation of LED fixtures on the façade of Okada Manila to his own company, Aruze.