Sahashi's Admission

It's one more step along the path to a jail cell. for taking money from NOVA's Shayuukai fund:

Disgraced former Nova Corp. President Nozomu Sahashi has admitted that he was solely responsible for misappropriating money from the coffers of an employees' welfare fund, police sources said.

Sahashi, 56, who was arrested for embezzlement in the conduct of business after he was found to have misappropriated about 320 million yen pooled in a Nova employees' mutual aid fund, had initially denied part of the allegations. However, he later told police, "I instructed everything," admitting to the charges.

isn't going to help his case:

NOVA's records show that approximately 700 million yen was withdrawn from one of the company's accounts in early August last year, according to the sources. The document does not specify how the money was spent.

Roughly 1.4 billion yen was placed into the same account in September last year. However, some 1.7 billion yen was later withdrawn in the same month under the pretext of "Sahashi, temporary payment," an apparent reference to payment made by then NOVA President Nozomu Sahashi, say the sources.

The source of the 1.4 billion yen, or how the 1.7 billion yen was used, remains unknown.

In other developments, Sahashi's communications company, NOVA's trustees apparently filed for bankruptcy on May 19. The company had debts totaling approximately ¥1.6 billion.