Prosecutor dismisses charges against Kazuo Okada
Kazuo Okada and his team had been accused of faking public documents.
The Philippines.- Criminal charges against Kazuo Okada and several Okada Manila board members have been dismissed by the Makati City Prosecutor (OCP). They had been accused of falsifying documents, but the prosecutor said there was a lack of probable cause.
The accusations had been made by Hajime Tokuda, director of Asia Best Group International and Universal Entertainment Corp – the parent company of Okada Manila operator Tiger Resort Leisure Entertainment Inc. (TRLEI). They were filed weeks before Kazuo Okada and his team regained control of Okada Manila.
After the resolution, Kazuo Okada, in a statement sent to The Manila Times, said: “The OCP Makati’s resolution is a testament that the Okada group has done nothing illegal with respect to its recovery of Okada Manila.
“Despite the actions of the Tokuda group to disrupt the operations of Okada Manila with their barrage of false accusations, the Okada group is encouraged by the fact that the OCP of Makati has upheld the actions of the Okada group, just like the Supreme Court, Pagcor (Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corp.) and the City of Parañaque.”
Earlier this week, the Kazuo Okada-backed board rejected Tiger Resorts Asia (TRAL)’s demand for an inspection of all payments made since the group returned to Okada Manila.
TRAL’s letter had demanded an inspection focusing on transfers exceeding PHP1m (US$18,000), payments made to all TRLEI contractors and transfers to Kazuo Okada, Antonio Cojuangco, or Dindo Espeleta-related companies.
TRAL had also requested monthly management reports for June and July, lists of all rehired employees, all new supply and construction contracts, projected payments of over PHP1m for August, new bank accounts, and changes to IT systems and records of deleted CCTV footage.
Divina Law said denial of this shareholder right “constitutes a crime under the amended company law”. However, Kazuo Okada’s team argues that the Status Quo Ante Order (SQAO) issued by the Supreme Court of the Philippines establishes Kazuo Okada as the sole representative of TRAL in TRLEI.
