S/ Kamata Tetsuro, Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department / We will do our best not to let something like this happen again. I sincerely apologize.

S/ Mori Hirohide, Tokyo District Public Prosecutors Office / We have caused great burden and heartache to you. I offer my heartfelt apology. I am truly sorry.

Representatives of Tokyo police and the Tokyo District Public Prosecutors Office visited the headquarters of spray dryer manufacturer Ohkawara Kakohki in Yokohama on June 20.

They apologized for wrongly accusing three company executives in 2020, after a court ruling that the investigations on them were illegal became finalized earlier in June.

S/ Ohkawara Masaaki, CEO, Ohkawara Kakohki / I wish your apology would have come sooner. I hope you will work on making your organizations better as police and prosecution so that this kind of thing never happens again.

Adding to the confusion, the police official referred to a former executive by a completely different name during the apology meeting, while the prosecution official said the company name wrong.

Kamata told reporters he is sorry about the name mix-up.

He said officials are currently examining what caused the false accusations to occur.

The bereaved family of one of the three did not attend the meeting, saying they cannot accept an apology while there has been no explanation as to what really happened.