Konami’s military technical advisor has been incarcerated for selling military weapons to Japan.
Metal Gear Solid 4 military consultant Tomoaki Iishiba is under investigation for selling night-vision firearm scopes from America to conspirators in Japan.
The charges, filed with the U.S. District Court in Seattle, explain that Iishiba ordered 60 of the EoTech 553 sights from OpticsPlanet for $639 a piece and mailed them to his contacts in Japan without purchasing an export license. He also sought to sell other firearms and Airsoft guns.
Iishiba is an Army captain who had recently been working as an intelligence liaison with the Japanese military. Born in Japan, Iishiba moved to America to join the army and served in Afghanistan in 2003. Since the charges were presented, he has been demoted to assistant operating officer.
“The command here is aware of the charges that were filed today in this Capt. Iishiba case,” said Fort Lewis spokesman Joseph Piek. “His command has been aware of the investigation as it’s been ongoing, and Fort Lewis has cooperated fully with civilian law enforcement.”
Although Iishiba did not comment on this story, he was recently quoted as saying that the Japanese military was “too soft” for modern warfare.
“It’s a different world now,” Iishiba said. “You’ve got to stand strong, but they’re not ready yet.”
Source: The News Tribune
Published: Jul 21, 2008 07:38 pm