Japanese-run restaurant's expired wagyu earns trio prison terms

Taichung, July 22 (CNA) Three Japanese nationals who ran a high-end barbecue restaurant in Taichung were sentenced to up to two years and eight months in prison for selling expired wagyu beef to customers, while the company that operated the restaurant was also fined.

The Taichung District Court sentenced Toshi Sakamoto, former head of Wagyu Emperor, and its former store manager, surnamed Kubo, to two years and eight months in prison each. The head chef, surnamed Yamazoe, received a two-year prison term.

The three will also be deported after serving their sentences, the court said. Libera Advertising Marketing Co., which operated the restaurant, was fined NT$1 million (US$32,300). The ruling can be appealed.

According to the indictment, Toshi Sakamoto and his brother, Takuya Sakamoto, who headed the operating company, ran the upscale wagyu barbecue restaurant, assisted by Kubo and Yamazoe.

Prosecutors said the defendants knowingly served expired Kobe beef between January and March 2024 while marketing the restaurant as "the pinnacle of Japanese barbecue in Taichung."

The expired beef was sold at its original price of NT$2,700 per serving to 29 unsuspecting customers, generating NT$78,300 in illegal proceeds, prosecutors said.

The four were indicted on charges including aggravated fraud and violations of the Act Governing Food Safety and Sanitation. In Wednesday's ruling, the court convicted Toshi Sakamoto, Kubo and Yamazoe. It did not issue a verdict on Takuya Sakamoto.

The case came to light in April 2024 after whistleblowers accused the restaurant of using expired ingredients. A subsequent inspection by Taichung food safety authorities found expired beef and other items, including miso, chili bean paste and cold noodles.

The restaurant was fined NT$1.44 million and ordered to suspend operations, and the case was referred to prosecutors under the Act Governing Food Safety and Sanitation.

The original operators later ceased operations. The restaurant has since been taken over by a new Taiwanese management team unrelated to the previous operators.