#Ufotable Fined, President Sentenced to Prison

Animation production studio Ufotable and its president Hikaru Kondo have been found guilty of tax evasion involving 138 million yen (~US$1.2 million).

As reported by Kyodo News, the studio, which produced shows like Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba and the Fate/stay night [Heaven’s Feel] trilogy, was slapped with a 30 million yen (~US$265,000) fine by the Tokyo District Court. Meanwhile, Kondo, 52, was sentenced to 20 months in prison. 

Kondo‘s sentence includes a three-year suspension, which is due to him having paid the tax that was evaded.

“Despite the company being in the black since 2012 thanks to the popularity of its high-quality anime works that gained acclaim, [Ufotable] repeatedly underreported sales,” the presiding judge, Akiyuki Tanaka, was reported as saying. “As corporate manager, you cannot escape strong criticism.” 

The report also mentions a statement from Ufotable saying that it “offers a heartfelt apology to fans of our works and those concerned.”

Kondo and Ufotable were indicted in July for evading around 109 million yen worth of corporate tax and 28 million yen worth of consumption tax. Kondo was said to have understated the company’s income for the fiscal years ending in August 2015, 2017, and 2018 and omitted to report some of the taxable sales. It was also reported at the time that they had filed a revised tax return and paid back the owed money.

In November, the prosecution recommended a 20-month sentence for Kondo and a 40 million yen (US$353,000) fine for Ufotable.

Source: Kyodo News