Former Osaka chief prosecutor denies sexual assault charge as trial resumes

Kentaro Kitagawa, the former head of the Osaka District Public Prosecutors Office, maintained his innocence on October 27 as his trial resumed at the Osaka District Court after a gap of about two years. He is accused of sexually assaulting a female prosecutor who was under his authority. Kitagawa, 67, admitted the allegations at the first hearing in October 2024 but later reversed his position.

According to Kansai TV’s account of Tuesday’s hearing, Kitagawa denied that the woman had been unable to resist. His defense argued that he had no criminal intent. The court has not yet delivered a verdict.

From admitting the allegations to seeking acquittal

The charge concerns events in September 2018. According to the indictment, after a gathering involving alcohol, Kitagawa took the woman to his official residence in Osaka and sexually assaulted her while she was intoxicated and unable to resist. Prosecutors allege that he exploited his position as her superior.

At the first hearing on October 25, 2024, he admitted the allegations, expressed remorse and apologized for the harm caused. On December 10 that year, however, his new lawyers announced that they would seek an acquittal. According to FNN’s reporting at the time, they explained his initial admission by saying he had not wanted to cause further trouble for those connected with the case or for the prosecution service.

The revised defense position is that Kitagawa believed the woman had consented and disputes whether alcohol had left her unable to resist. Following that reversal, the court, prosecutors and defense spent close to two years in closed proceedings reviewing evidence and defining the disputed issues, according to MBS.

What the court must examine

MBS identifies two central questions: whether the woman had been able to refuse or resist the act, and whether Kitagawa acted knowing her condition. Evidence and testimony will be used to examine those circumstances. The parties’ assertions are not findings by the court.

At Tuesday’s hearing, Kansai TV reported, prosecutors described the woman as severely affected by alcohol and emphasized the power imbalance. The defense challenged the sufficiency of the evidence, arguing that recordings that might have helped reconstruct events were no longer available. It also questioned whether the complainant’s account could establish the disputed facts, given gaps in her memory.

The Japanese charge, jun-kyōsei seikō tō, concerns sexual acts committed by taking advantage of a person’s inability to resist. Japan’s Justice Ministry explains that, before the 2023 reform, the law used requirements such as mental incapacity or an inability to resist. The reform consolidated the offenses under provisions centered on difficulty forming, expressing or acting on a decision not to consent. The events in this case date to 2018.

The complainant and the institution’s response

The woman is publicly identified by the pseudonym Hikari. According to MBS, she reported the alleged assault six years later, after being diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder. She left the prosecution service at the end of August 2026 after calling for an independent investigation into harassment and the organization’s response.

Her calls for institutional accountability predate the latest hearing. At a news conference in March, covered by AFP, she accused the prosecution service of failing to protect victims and sought an outside panel. The authorities approached for a response declined to comment, citing her separate lawsuit against the state. Her allegation of a cover-up is an accusation, not a judicial finding.

The case has also led to separate proceedings concerning a colleague whom Hikari accused of disclosing private information and leaking case details. On October 5, Mainichi reported that an Osaka prosecution review panel had upheld the decision not to indict that official. That decision does not determine the criminal case against Kitagawa.

After Tuesday’s morning session, Hikari told Kansai TV that she had cried as prosecutors recounted the alleged assault and expressed anger at the defense’s arguments.

According to the schedule reported by MBS, ten hearings are planned, including the October 27 session, with witnesses and the defendant to be questioned. Proceedings are scheduled to conclude on February 15, with a verdict on March 12, 2027. Whether Kitagawa is convicted or acquitted remains for the court to decide.

The archive photograph is by DVMG and is available on Wikimedia Commons under a CC BY 3.0 license. It has been resized for publication.