Gaming tycoon nabbed in Hong Kong over $19.7 million fraud case

MANILA, Philippines — Embattled Japanese gaming tycoon Kazuo Okada was arrested in Hong Kong last week over a $19.7-million fraud case.

The 75-year-old businessman was arrested by operatives of Hong Kong’s Independent Commission Against Corruption (ICAC), according to a report received by the Department of Justice (DOJ).

Okada was reportedly arrested with a certain Li Jian over a case for alleged conspiracy to defraud the Hong Kong-registered family company Okada Holdings of 135 million yuan or $19.7 million.

Li, a director of New Games Corp., allegedly received one million yuan from Okada based on the complaint acted upon by the ICAC, according to the same report.

ICAC is the agency of the Chinese special administrative region that investigates corruption cases in Hong Kong, committed by public officials and involving private individuals.

Okada’s arrest was reported by Chinese tabloid Headline Daily in its Aug. 1 edition and was also carried by online news portals in Hong Kong. 

The camp of Okada, however, denied the reported arrest. His lawyers said the case in Hong Kong was already dismissed last May.

Okada, former chief executive officer (CEO) of posh Okada Manila owner Tiger Resort Leisure & Entertainment Inc., is facing separate cases of estafa in the Philippines for allegedly embezzling more than $10 million in company funds. The complaints, filed by majority shareholders of TRLEI, were dismissed by the Parañaque City prosecutor’s office but are now being reviewed by the DOJ.

TRLEI is asking the DOJ to set aside earlier resolutions that had allegedly been leaked, adding that pertinent portions found their way to the social media accounts of Okada’s Korean girlfriend, Chloe Kim, last May 18.

TRLEI said the leakage, along with the wrongful disposition and resolution of the cases, indicated the prosecutor’s undue interest in the charges and did not only violate due process but constituted grave administrative offenses.

It said the leakage “not only violated pertinent laws on public officers but also seriously damaged the credibility, independence and integrity of the assailed resolutions as well as of the Office of the City Prosecutor.”

“The leaked assailed resolution itself is the smoking gun that something irregular happened in the Office of the City Prosecutor of Parañaque City,” it claimed.

The controversy prompted Justice Secretary Menardo Guevarra to order the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) to probe into the circumstances surrounding the leakage of the two resolutions issued by City Prosecutor Amerhassan Paudac.

Guevarra had said the “premature disclosure of orders and resolutions prior to official release is not allowed unless there are compelling reasons that would sufficiently justify the same.” The DOJ has since assumed jurisdiction of the investigation of the two estafa cases.