The third hearing in the trial of Kenjiro Kitagawa, 67, a former head of the Osaka District Public Prosecutors Office charged with quasi-rape of a subordinate prosecutor, was held at the Osaka District Court on the 6th. Prosecutors began questioning the woman as a witness, rebutting Kitagawa's claim of innocence, which includes his assertion that he believed the sex was consensual.
A screen was set up in the courtroom so that the woman could not be seen by members of the public. She chose to appear in person, although the court also offered a video link to a room outside the courtroom, with audio and video.
According to her testimony, Kitagawa was her supervising mentor when she was a newly appointed prosecutor, an "enraku" — a benefactor who taught her the basics of investigation.
“Why, why did the top prosecutor do it?”the woman, describing her state of mind at the time of the alleged assault, witness
Who investigates the investigators
The case puts the prosecutors' own hierarchy on trial: the accused is the man who ran the office, and the complaint comes from a prosecutor who worked under him. Quasi-rape (junkangō seikō) is a charge of sexual intercourse with a person who is unable to resist because of unconsciousness or incapacity.
The trial has been interrupted for two years, and the woman has spoken publicly of her anger, saying her time has stood still. Kitagawa has pleaded not guilty.