Sapporo hospital bid obstruction case: Appeal court ruling by former presidents

On the 28th, the Supreme Court's Second Petty Bench ruled on the appeal of former president Masato Sakai (57) and former director Noriyoshi Niiyama (58) of the major dispensing pharmacy company Ain Pharmacies (Sapporo City), who were accused of obstructing public contract auction bids regarding a pharmacy improvement project ordered by the general hospital KKR Sapporo Medical Center. Presiding Judge Kazumi Okamura overturned the second-instance Sapporo High Court's decision that acquitted the two men, and remanded Sakai's trial to the same high court. Niiyama's appeal was dismissed and his conviction by the Sapporo District Court of first instance became final.

Supreme Court to reconsider ex-dispensing pharmacy presidents innocent, Sapporo hospital argues over bidding interference

In arguments held on the 7th, the prosecution argued that the second trial had made a serious factual error in interpreting the suitability of the bid in a limited manner. The defense argued that the contract was ``a type of voluntary contract and does not constitute a bid.''

In December 2020, Sakai and his colleagues were indicted for a public call for proposals for a pharmacy improvement project, after being informed of another company's proposal by the hospital's former administrative manager (who was found guilty of the same crime) after the deadline, and then resubmitting a project proposal that was favorable to their company.

In 2024, the Sapporo District Court sentenced both defendants to six months in prison with a two-year suspended sentence, but the Sapporo High Court in 2025 acquitted them on the grounds that they did not have the substance for competitive bidding, and the prosecution appealed.