TOKYO – Takeshi Niinami, former chairman of Japanese beverage maker Suntory Holdings Ltd., said Wednesday he will step back from his duties as chief of a major business body, but stressed he had not breached Japanese law over the purchase of a dietary supplement.
“I have not broken any laws and am innocent,” Niinami, the 66-year-old said as he appeared at a regular press conference as head of the Japan Association of Corporate Executives, a day after the scandal surfaced, leading to the announcement of his resignation as Suntory chairman.
“But in the end, it is due to my carelessness that I have caused this trouble to society and I apologize,” he added.
With Niinami staying away from his activities as head of the business body known as Keizai Doyukai for the time being, Senior Vice Chairman Mutsuo Iwai will serve as acting chair.
Iwai, also chairman of Japan Tobacco Inc., said at the same press conference that the association will decide on whether to dismiss Niinami from his role by the end of this month.
Niinami, meanwhile, said he will leave it up to the government to decide whether he should remain as a member of the government’s key council on economic and fiscal policy.
Niinami is under investigation over a supplement he purchased believing it to be legal.
He said at the press conference he bought a cannabidiol supplement in the United States, recommended by an acquaintance, to help him handle jet lag from frequent overseas business trips. Cannabidiol, or CBD, is a compound found in cannabis.
According to investigative sources, Niinami’s house in Tokyo and other locations were searched by police on Aug. 22, based on information provided by customs authorities in southwestern Japan regarding the import of a substance likely illegal in Japan.
The Fukuoka prefectural police did not find any illegal drugs during the search, but have questioned Niinami on a voluntary basis to see if he had any knowledge of the substance’s illegality and to determine whether they should build a criminal case against him, the sources have said.
The drug in question, which contains a high percentage of a substance derived from cannabis, was allegedly shipped from the United States by an acquaintance of Niinami, according to the sources.
Niinami, a graduate of the Harvard Business School, took the helm of major convenience store chain Lawson Inc. as president in 2002 at age 43. He became the first Suntory Holdings president from outside the founding family in 2014.
