<figure id="attachment_455441" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-455441" style="width: 1500px" class="wp-caption alignnone"><a href="#" data-ident_hash="e2cbe534"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/fridaydigital/image/private/t_article_image/wpmedia/2026/01/18efebb730e8910a68b48880ca5ed38e.jpg" alt=""></a><figcaption id="caption-attachment-455441" class="wp-caption-text">Shinichi Sato, a professor of dermatology at the University of Tokyo Graduate School of Medicine and a doctor, arrested on bribery charges</figcaption></figure>
<h2><span class="strongInContent"> Living a life of &#8220;bribery&#8221; outside the university</span></h2>
<p> Sitting in the back seat of a police vehicle with only one eye open, the man peering out of the vehicle showed none of the dignity and authority of the &#8220;charismatic professor&#8221; he was once known as.</p>
<p> On January 24, the Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department arrested Shinichi Sato, 62, a professor of dermatology at the University of Tokyo Graduate School of Medicine and a physician, on suspicion of bribery.</p>
<p><span class="strongInContent"> According to investigators, Sato and his subordinate, Ayumi Yoshizaki, 46, a doctor and former specially-appointed associate professor at the graduate school, received a total of over 4.6 million yen worth of entertainment, including food and drink. On January 26, the Tokyo District Public Prosecutors Office referred Koichi Hikichi Hikichi, 52, the representative director of the Japan Cosmetics Association (Bessho-machi, Kishiwada City, Osaka Prefecture), a partner in the joint research, to the Tokyo District Public Prosecutors Office on charges of bribery worth approximately 3.8 million yen. (Reporter, National Newspaper, Social Affairs Department)</span></p>
<div data-friday-ad-slot="AD_inArticle"></div>
<p> In return for favors in the operation of a &#8220;social cooperation course&#8221; on the effects of marijuana ingredients on skin diseases, Sato and Yoshizaki received entertainment from Hikichi at high-class clubs and high-class soaplands on approximately 30 occasions between March 2011 and August 2012, worth a total of approximately 3.8 million yen. In addition, he received entertainment from Hikichi at high-class restaurants. In addition, he was also entertained at high-class restaurants (totaling more than 4.6 million yen).</p>
<p><span class="strongInContent"> In the January 27 issue of &#8220;Shukan SPA!,&#8221; Hikichi confessed in an interview with the media that he had spent &#8220;about 30 million yen, including the cost of tailoring suits and other gifts,&#8221; over a 17-month period for entertainment. During that time, the suspect was subjected to &#8220;threatening&#8221; language from Sato, and in May 2013, he filed a lawsuit against the University of Tokyo, Sato, and Yoshizaki claiming damages.</span></p>
<div data-friday-ad-slot="AD_inArticle"></div>
<p> Sato graduated from the University of Tokyo&#8217;s School of Medicine in 1989 and began working as a dermatology assistant in the same department, earning his M.D. in 1994, and after studying abroad at Duke University in the U.S. and serving as an assistant professor at Kanazawa University&#8217;s graduate school, he became a professor at the University of Tokyo in 2009.&#8221; He is known as an authority on scleroderma research, receiving the University of Tokyo Hospital Director&#8217;s Award in 2009. He was a &#8220;charismatic&#8221; figure in the University of Tokyo&#8217;s Faculty of Medicine and was praised for his achievements.</p>
<p> However, outside of the university, he is believed to have led a life of &#8220;patronage&#8221; on a daily basis. This incident involving a &#8220;charismatic&#8221; professor at Todai was a major problem that shook the entire university. This is a major problem that will shake the entire University of Tokyo, and the social repercussions are likely to be quite large. How much will he be charged with?</p>
<div data-friday-nextpage-lead=" Probationary sentence is highly likely."></div>
<div></div>
<h2><span class="strongInContent">The expected sentence is: &#8230;&#8230;</span></h2>
<p> For example, in January 2009, a former professor of Mie University Hospital was convicted of third-party bribery and fraud for offering a total of 4 million yen in cash from a pharmaceutical company and others in return for favors in the delivery of pharmaceuticals and medical equipment. He was sentenced in January 2011 to two years and six months in prison, with a suspended sentence of four years. Koichiro Matsui, an attorney at ATOM Law Offices, interviewed him.</p>
<div data-friday-ad-slot="AD_inArticle"></div>
<p><span class="strongInContent"> Koichiro Matsui, an attorney at ATOM Law Office, said, &#8220;Although it may depend somewhat on the defense, we think there is a high possibility that the sentence will be suspended. Indeed, considering the fact that the entertainment at high-class clubs and sex clubs was continuous (not one-time), the large amount of money he received, and the extent to which he used his position as a professor at the University of Tokyo to undermine the fairness of his duties and public trust in them, it is possible that he will be given a prison sentence. On the other hand, however, the sentence of prison is not a given.</span></p>
<p><span class="strongInContent"> On the other hand, however, the court will take into consideration the fact that the suspect has no previous criminal record, that he has received social sanctions due to the extensive media coverage, and that he will probably have to appear before witnesses on the trial date and make a speech of remorse, among other factors. Therefore, we believe that there is a strong possibility that the case will be given a suspended sentence.</span></p>
<div data-friday-ad-slot="AD_inArticle"></div>
<p> On January 28, University of Tokyo President Teruo Fujii held an unusual apology press conference,</p>
<p><span class="strongInContent"> Mr. Sato&#8217;s actions were a serious breach of the ethical standards expected of faculty members, and we have taken the most severe disciplinary action possible: dismissal from the faculty.</span></p>
<p> The company announced that it had taken the most severe disciplinary action against Mr. Sato, dismissing him. One wonders what the suspect will have to say in his upcoming trial.</p>
<div data-friday-nextpage-lead=" The &quot;charismatic&quot; face of Tokyo University has fallen to the ground"></div>
<figure id="attachment_455442" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-455442" style="width: 671px" class="wp-caption alignnone"><a href="#" data-ident_hash="9de39afb"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/fridaydigital/image/private/t_article_image/wpmedia/2026/01/44aa706ea620718997e96900c79518f8-1.jpg" alt=""></a><figcaption id="caption-attachment-455442" class="wp-caption-text">Suspect Shinichi Sato enters the Tokyo District Public Prosecutors Office. He was lying face down with his eyes closed.</figcaption></figure>
<div data-friday-ad-slot="AD_inArticle"></div>
<figure id="attachment_455444" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-455444" style="width: 1086px" class="wp-caption alignnone"><a href="#" data-ident_hash="56260256"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/fridaydigital/image/private/t_article_image/wpmedia/2026/01/d89b0baea5b36583c02d895eb1966ce0.jpg" alt=""></a><figcaption id="caption-attachment-455444" class="wp-caption-text"> Noticing many cameramen, the suspect Sato looks at them with only one eye open</figcaption></figure>
<div data-friday-ad-slot="AD_inArticle"></div>
<figure id="attachment_455445" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-455445" style="width: 1086px" class="wp-caption alignnone"><a href="#" data-ident_hash="204918a1"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/fridaydigital/image/private/t_article_image/wpmedia/2026/01/1961af735831acbe94f1a9b7d328456b.jpg" alt=""></a><figcaption id="caption-attachment-455445" class="wp-caption-text"> Suspect Sato lying face down with eyes closed again</figcaption></figure>


 Shinji Hasuo

 Shinichi Sato, a graduate school professor at the University of Tokyo, was arrested for bribery of high-class clubs and sexual entertainment. When entering the Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department in a police vehicle, the suspect was looking at the press with only one eye open. There was none of the dignity of the "charisma" he was once known for.

Professor of the Graduate School of the University of Tokyo&#8221; arrested for bribery of high-class clubs and sexual entertainment with one eye open, showing zero charisma.

Professor of the Graduate School of the University of Tokyo” arrested for bribery of high-class clubs and sexual entertainment with one eye open, showing zero charisma.

Access Ranking