Kotomitsuki accused of gambling- dismissed from Sumo

[alpineviolet 0]

The Kyokai's lawyer Ben Goshi is now saying that there may have been a serious procedural error on their part in this investigation. All details of the Kyokai's questionnaire were handed over to the police, names and all, but it was done without advising the people in advance, and there may have been a violation of their privacy . "We want to totally 'empty the sea' (this idiom has been used millions of times by everyone these last few days..) and some may not like our method, but that's how it's going down!", said Rij. Some are not liking it at all, and are threatening to sue for breach of privacy. "We broke paragraph 192 section 2 of the Criminal Procedure Code and passed the information off to the police, as some of the executives in the Kyokai thought it was OK.. It appears to have been inappropriate..," admitted Mr. Goshi. What started off as an internal Kyokai investigation ended up involving the police, and some people are not happy, not happy at all.

Did anyone ever follow-through on the threat to sue for breach of privacy?

I'd be amazed if anyone had the chutzpah to do this, but I guess there are times when the best defense is a good offense, and now seems as good a time as any to throw the Kyokai under the proverbial bus...

With things going on like this, and with Kotomitsuki's promised slap on the wrist turning into dismissal, is it any wonder the rikishi aren't more forthcoming with information?

[Kintamayama 47,308]

Ex-Kotomitsuki took the witness stand today at the trial of Mr. Furuichi who allegedly blackmailed him on baseball gambling. His testimony was given from behind a screen. "I was afraid that if I didn't pay up he would go with all the details to the media or the police, and I would be thrown out of sumo.. I also knew that after paying for the first time, a second time will inevitably come. I want to put all this behind me as quickly as possible," he said. Ex-Kotomitsuki is said to have paid 3,500,000 yen, and the second time around, he was asked for 80,000,000 yen, but did not pay.

Edited February 28, 2011 by Kintamayama

[Kintamayama 47,308]

Ex-Kotomitsuki took the witness stand today at the trial of Mr. Furuichi who allegedly blackmailed him on baseball gambling.

Video

[Kintamayama 47,308]

The Yakuza guy from the Yamaguchi group who blackmailed Kotomitsuki is going to jail for two years, it was sentenced yesterday.

[Kintamayama 47,308]

ex- Kotomitsuki is suing the Kyokai for wrongful dismissal. He says he admitted to gambling after the Kyokai promised leniency to those that admitted it, but then dismissed him anyway-the only active rikishi to be dismissed in this affair, while others were let off with lighter punishments. "My lawyer knows all the details," he explained.

[Peterao 3]

Typical Japanese mentality. Nobody will cross on the red light until somebody else does it, then they all follow like lemmings.

WUSS!

[Kintamayama 47,308]

At today's hearing session, suspected blackmailer Mr. Furuichi the older suddenly denied it was blackmail. "I was merely collecting Kotomitsukli's debt," he testified. Today, ex-Ootake Oyakata was supposed to be cross-examined by the defense, but he ever showed up.

[Kintamayama 47,308]

Hearing today- Kotomitsuki himself did not show up video

Nice chairs.

Edited June 6, 2011 by Kintamayama

[Asashosakari 20,273]

It's coming from a tabloid (Shukan Post), so the usual grain of salt applies: Supposedly the Kyokai is rather afraid of the Kotomitsuki lawsuit dragging on as he's in a position to blow the lid off another of the Kyokai's skeleton closets - the shady ways in which kabu are traded. It's long been rumoured that the Futagoyama tax evasion case of the mid-1990s was only the tip of the iceberg and that money is changing hands for kabu sales (and probably loans, too) without the tax agency knowing about it on a regular basis. An anonymous "young oyakata" is quoted to the effect that Kotomitsuki paid a significant "deposit" for the Hidenoyama share (he was never officially acknowledged as the owner, perhaps to make use of the 3-year grace period first if his firing hadn't intervened), and that this of course happened without a written contract and any money trail. Mickey allegedly plans to bring this issue into his wrongful dismissal trial. If so, bad news for the Kyokai overall and of course especially for the majority of oyakata who want to see the kabu system continue untouched.

The quoted oyakata also believes that Kotomitsuki has little interest in an active return anymore and mostly wants to be reinstated so he can properly retire and join the oyakata ranks.

Personal note: As a kabu nut I'm actually quite in favour of the current system, but it needs massively increased transparency. Of course, it's possible that the system can't actually work if everybody has to be open about any payments and the current true ownership status of every share... (And even that might not be enough to satisfy the public-service laws; still nobody seems sure if buying and selling actually needs to be prohibited.)

[Jaak 7]

It's coming from a tabloid (Shukan Post), so the usual grain of salt applies: Supposedly the Kyokai is rather afraid of the Kotomitsuki lawsuit dragging on as he's in a position to blow the lid off another of the Kyokai's skeleton closets - the shady ways in which kabu are traded. It's long been rumoured that the Futagoyama tax evasion case of the mid-1990s was only the tip of the iceberg and that money is changing hands for kabu sales (and probably loans, too) without the tax agency knowing about it on a regular basis. An anonymous "young oyakata" is quoted to the effect that Kotomitsuki paid a significant "deposit" for the Hidenoyama share (he was never officially acknowledged as the owner, perhaps to make use of the 3-year grace period first if his firing hadn't intervened), and that this of course happened without a written contract and any money trail. Mickey allegedly plans to bring this issue into his wrongful dismissal trial. If so, bad news for the Kyokai overall and of course especially for the majority of oyakata who want to see the kabu system continue untouched.

The quoted oyakata also believes that Kotomitsuki has little interest in an active return anymore and mostly wants to be reinstated so he can properly retire and join the oyakata ranks.

When the court forces Kyokai to take Kotomitsuki back as Hidenoyama oyakata, is Kyokai likely to be also forced to take back Takatoriki as Otake oyakata?

[Otokonoyama 2,735]

Ex-sumo wrestler found guilty over gambling on baseball games

The Tokyo District Court sentenced a 35-year-old former sumo wrestler Wednesday to 10 months in prison, suspended for three years, for organizing gambling on professional baseball matches.

Sadahide Furuichi, a former second-tier juryo division wrestler, was given the sentence along with his mother, Yoneko, 64, who also was given a 10-month prison term, suspended for three years.

http://www.japantoday.com/category/crime/v...-baseball-games

[ryafuji 825]

Mitsutomo Furuichi was today found guilty of extortion and sentenced to four and a half years:

http://mdn.mainichi.jp/mdnnews/sports/news...0sp086000c.html

[Kintamayama 47,308]

The Kyokai has offered Mr. Tamiya (ex-Kotomitsuki) a monetary settlement in court today. The sum was not disclosed. "The offer was very generous-the courthouse was very impressed as well. The problem is that my client is not after the money-he wants to be reinstated in sumo," explained Ben Goshi, Mr. Tamiya's lawyer.

Edited November 22, 2012 by Kintamayama

[Jakusotsu 6,401]

This offer stinks. Does it mean Kotomitsuki's dismissal was unjustified and he now gets some money because reinstatement is impossible by NSK rules?

[shumitto 419]

In the end I think he will take it. What else can we expect from a 36 year-old who has been away from sumo for a loong time now ?

[Asashosakari 20,273]

This offer stinks.

Why? Sometimes it's good business practice to pay somebody to go away even if there's no actual reason to do so except to avoid negative publicity.

Given that a) there wasn't really any doubt that Kotomitsuki was indeed deep into illegal gambling, and b) the courts haven't ruled against the Kyokai in any other dismissal cases, I think it's more likely that the generous offer is intended as a golden handshake, not hush money.

In the end I think he will take it. What else can we expect from a 36 year-old who has been away from sumo for a loong time now ?

He doesn't want to do sumo, he wants to become oyakata.

Edited November 22, 2012 by Asashosakari

[yorikiried by fate 2,038]

I'm a bit lazy to look it up: What was the kabu situation? Did he already own a share? If yes, what happened to it? Etc. blahblahblah...

[Asashosakari 20,273]

I'm a bit lazy to look it up: What was the kabu situation? Did he already own a share? If yes, what happened to it? Etc. blahblahblah...

Didn't own any share officially, but the popular theory at the time was that he'd use the 3-year grace period for ozeki and eventually take over the Hidenoyama kabu.

[shumitto 419]

In the end I think he will take it. What else can we expect from a 36 year-old who has been away from sumo for a loong time now ?

He doesn't want to do sumo, he wants to become oyakata.

So in the end it's more a review of his retirement status than a re-instatement itself. It makes sense from his point of view, however unlikely it is to happen.

I'm a bit lazy to look it up: What was the kabu situation? Did he already own a share? If yes, what happened to it? Etc. blahblahblah...

No, he had none. I remember some rumour about his possibly getting the Hidenoyama-share, now in the hands of former Kotonishiki.

Edit - Asashosakari beat me to it.

Edited November 22, 2012 by shumitto

[yorikiried by fate 2,038]

Thanks for the info. I anyway don't get it. Even if a court would rule in his favor, how could he expect to find someone prepared to give him a share. In any case he should end up being totally isolated.

[Asashosakari 20,273]

Thanks for the info. I anyway don't get it. Even if a court would rule in his favor, how could he expect to find someone prepared to give him a share. In any case he should end up being totally isolated.

My (potentially wrong) impression is that they never really wanted to dismiss Kotomitsuki in the first place, and only did it because of the public furor and ministerial demands to "do something". Hence they offered no resistence at all when it came to the question of paying Kotomitsuki his retirement bonus, and IMO that also explains the seemingly generous deal offered now. It's not that they broke any legal rules in dismissing him - at least I suspect the courts will find that, just as they did in other cases - but they broke their own unspoken rules and bond. And they're trying to compensate Kotomitsuki for it, without the bad press that his full return would probably bring.

Still, if they were "forced" to take him back in, I have little doubt he'd find a share - at least if it happens before the new kabu rules come in (assuming they ever do), because a kabu commission stacked with outsiders will probably think differently.

As a career-high sekiwake Kotomitsuki probably would have got away with a one- or two-basho ban, even if his case did instigate the whole affair. (File that as a counter-example to all the perks of holding a higher rank...)

Edited November 22, 2012 by Asashosakari

[yorikiried by fate 2,038]

Good reasoning.

[Jakusotsu 6,401]

Makes sense that way, thanks for your thoughts.

Another factor being his acting as a straw man for Otake perhaps.

[Nabuko 11]

As a career-high sekiwake Kotomitsuki probably would have got away with a one- or two-basho ban, even if his case did instigate the whole affair. (File that as a counter-example to all the perks of holding a higher rank...)

What? He was Ozeki! In fact he is quite old more than 36 years now and in time of "intai" about 34. What now he can do to serve as a throwing bag.

[Nabuko 11]

OK.