Kanagawa prefectural police arrested a Kawasaki city manager on Wednesday on suspicion of leaking unpublished pricing information to contractors bidding on publicly funded painting and waterproofing work, according to people involved in the investigation.
Takao Sekiguchi, 59, a manager in the city's urban development bureau and a resident of Tama Ward, Kawasaki, is suspected of violating the Act on Prevention of Unfair Bidding and of interfering with public contract auctions.
Investigators suspect Sekiguchi leaked unpublished construction prices to the Kawasaki Painting Contractors Association, an industry body, in connection with a 2024 open competitive tender for painting and waterproofing work at city-owned facilities.
At the time, Sekiguchi headed the facilities maintenance department of the urban development bureau, which oversees work on city-owned buildings.
Procurement and the law
The Act on Prevention of Unfair Bidding bars officials from disclosing information that could give a bidder an advantage in a public tender. The second charge covers interference with the fairness of an auction tied to a public contract.