Japanese slot machine and pachinko maker Universal Entertainment Corp. revealed on Monday that the investigation into its founder, Kazuo Okada, has been extended to include two more instances of allegedly questionable money transfers.
Earlier this month, Universal Entertainment announced that its founding father was the subject of an ongoing probe over the amount of HK$135 million he and company Director Yoshinao Negishi had extended as a loan to a third party. The transfer had been completed without being approved by the company’s board and had allegedly benefited Mr. Okada.
The money transfer had been carried out from Universal Entertainment subsidiary Tiger Resort Asia to an undisclosed third party. That third party had then referred the money to Okada Holdings Ltd., a company that had been run by Mr. Okada at the time.
Universal Entertainment said in a Monday filing to the JASDAQ Securities Exchange that there might be at least two more instances of improper money transfers with the participation of Mr. Okada. The pachinko maker revealed that in February 2014, Mr. Okada’s Okada Holdings Ltd. was involved in negotiations over South Korea land transactions through its South Korean subsidiary Okada Holdings Korea.
It was found out that during negotiations, Okada Holdings borrowed the amount of $80 million from an unnamed financial institution. A security interest, held by Universal subsidiary Universal Entertainment Korea Co., Ltd., was then created. Said security interest was closed in late March 2014, but interest of around $170,000 was then paid by Universal Entertainment Korea, despite being supposed to be disbursed by Okada Holdings.
The second instance involved Mr. Okada issuing a HK$16-million bearer check from a Tiger Resort Asia bank account back in May 2015. Mr. Okada was a director at said company at the time. Several days after the check was issued, Mr. Okada allegedly withdrew money from the bank account, based on the check in question.
The newly emerged cases of suspicious money transfers were too included into the ongoing investigation of Mr. Okada’s activities as a Director at Universal Entertainment. The Japanese billionaire and his alleged accomplice Mr. Negishi were removed from the pachinko manufacturer’s board.
Casino News Daily also reported on Monday that Mr. Okada has been ousted from his Chairman role at Universal Entertainment subsidiary Tiger Resort, Leisure, and Entertainment. The latter company currently manages the $2.4-billion Okada Manila casino resort in the Philippine capital. Tiger Resort officials have previously pointed out that news about the ongoing investigation have not affected the hotel and casino complex’s operations.
The probe into Mr. Okada’s activities is currently being carried out by a Special Investigation Committee and the results from it are expected to be announced on or around June 30.
