Prosecutors on Friday charged the owner and proprietors of Wagyu Emperor, a high-end grilled meat restaurant in Taichung, for allegedly having expired food products and suspicion of fraud. Consumers had filed a complaint and an investigation was launched in April.
The three indicted are Japanese nationals: Wagyu Emperor chairman Toshi Sakamoto, 35; restaurant general manager Atsuya Kubo, 25; and head chef Shohei Yamazoe, 42.
Prosecutors requested the maximum sentence, alleging that the trio was hostile to investigators, threatened media reporters for publishing news reports on the case and said they would not compensate the consumers who were allegedly victimized.
Photo provided by the Taichung City Health Bureau
Prosecutors also asked the court to seize NT$78,300 (US$2,409) profit related to the incident.
In April, consumers had filed a complaint and a “food safety alert” was raised, leading to an inspection by the Taichung City Health Bureau and a preliminary probe by prosecutors. The Ministry of Justice’s Investigation Bureau searched the restaurant, looked at its food products, and confiscated receipts, purchase order records, menus and preparation lists.
Wagyu Emperor was started by Takuya Sakamoto, who ran a food supply firm in Taiwan, in September last year. It was later handed over to his brother, Toshi Sakamoto, prosecutors said.
Sakamoto Toshi hired Kubo as the store’s general manager and Yamazoe as head chef.
“The trio knew the Kobe beef they purchased was past its due date, but they still continued to sell the meat and promoted the restaurant as ‘the highest peak of Taichung’s Japanese yakiniku restaurants,’” prosecutors said.
“From January to March, they sold to 29 customers at NT$2,900 per person. They profited NT$78,300 while causing serious health issues and contravening consumer rights,” the indictment said.
The investigation allegedly found that the Kobe beef’s “best before” date was at the start of December last year, but they continued to sell until March this year, it said.
The trio contravened the Act Governing Food Safety and Sanitation (食品安全衛生管理法) by selling food past its expiration date, the indictment said. They would also be charged with aggravated fraud and causing harm to health under the Criminal Code.
Prosecutors said that the trio did not prioritize food safety.
They sold expired items to reduce loss and gain profit, despite their promotions and advertisements saying “we use top-class wagyu beef,” “our mission is to carry on the tradition of Japanese yakiniku food culture,” “customers would feel like they are in Japan,” and “we only use the highest class of Japanese beef, for highest-class dining experience,” the filing said.
Wagyu Emperor has been bought by a Taiwanese business team and has been reopened. The restaurant’s name and address remain the same.
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