Tsuguhiko Kadokawa was arrested on September 14 on suspicion of offering bribes, according to The Japan Times. The 79-year-old businessman allegedly paid around $481,000 to Haruyuki Takahashi, a former executive of the Tokyo Games organising committee.

Takahashi is a Japanese businessman and the board member of the Tokyo 2020 Olympics committee. He is also a former executive of advertising agency Dentsu, where he worked for over 40 years.

Prosecutors suspect Kadokawa made nine transfers from the company’s bank account to a consulting firm led by Kazumasa Fukami, another former Dentsu employee. The bribes were reportedly paid between September 2019 and January 2021 in exchange for making Kadokawa Corporation an official sponsor of the Tokyo Olympic and Paralympics.

Tsuguhiko Kadokawa is one of the sons of Genyoshi Kadokawa, who founded Kadokawa Shoten in 1945. The company initially focused on publishing manga and later expanded into other mediums, including video games.

Tsuguhiko Kadokawa joined Kadokawa Shoten in 1966 as executive vice president. In 1993, he became the company’s president following his brother Haruki’s arrest on drug smuggling charges and forced resignation.

In 2014, Kadokawa acquired 80 per cent of Dark Souls developer FromSoftware. At the time, the studio’s CEO Naotoshi Zin cited the ability to make games for more platforms and reach a wider audience globally as the reasons for this deal.

FromSoftware released titles like Bloodborne, Dark Souls III, Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice, and Elden Ring. The latter became the studio’s biggest hit to date, selling over 16 million units.