Tokyo prosecutors have decided not to indict two senior lawmakers. The two lawmakers were involved in a political fund scandal concerning multiple factions within the main ruling Liberal Democratic Party.
They are the former party policy affairs chief Hagiuda Koichi and the former Upper House secretary-general Seko Hiroshige who were accused of breaching the political funds control law.
A university professor and a citizens' group filed criminal complaints against them on suspicion of violating the law. The university professor says he will consider filing a complaint with a prosecution inquest panel.
Prosecutors say they could not gain sufficient grounds for indicting the two lawmakers.
Hagiuda was accused of failing to declare 27.28 million yen, or over 173 thousand dollars, as revenues from fundraising parties in political funds reports.
Seko allegedly failed to report 15.42 million yen, or more than 97 thousand dollars, in political funds reports. Seko left the LDP in response to a punishment decided by the party's ethics committee regarding the scandal.
Multiple LDP factions have been caught up in the scandal as they failed to properly declare revenues from fundraising parties in their political fund reports.
The factions included those led by the late former Prime Minister Abe Shinzo, former LDP secretary-general Nikai Toshihiro, and Prime Minister Kishida Fumio.
Prosecutors built cases against ten other people, including chief treasurers, lawmakers, secretaries and others. Four of them were settled a summary order including being given a fine as a penalty.