Kakuei Tanaka took no bribes from Lockheed

Kakuei Tanaka took no bribes from Lockheed
	FALSE
	"Former Japanese Prime Minister Kakuei Tanaka received no money from Lockheed to influence All Nippon Airways' purchase of its TriStar jets."
Domain	Business, Finance & Scams
Tactic	Fraud or Scam;
Era	Historical
First seen	1976
Origin	Denials by Kakuei Tanaka and his supporters after the scandal broke in 1976
Last reviewed	2026-11-01
	Further reading: books on Business, Finance & Scams

In February 1976, a US Senate subcommittee led by Frank Church revealed that the American aircraft maker Lockheed had paid bribes to officials in several countries to win contracts. In Japan, the payments were linked to All Nippon Airways' purchase of Lockheed L-1011 TriStar airliners.

Former Prime Minister Kakuei Tanaka denied wrongdoing. He was arrested in July 1976 and convicted in 1983.

What the evidence shows

Conviction. In October 1983, the Tokyo District Court found Tanaka guilty of accepting ¥500 million in bribes, routed through Lockheed's agent Marubeni, and sentenced him to four years in prison.
Appeals. Tanaka's conviction was upheld on appeal in 1987. He died in 1993 while a further appeal was pending, and the Supreme Court later upheld the convictions of others in the case.
Other countries. The scandal also led to the downfall of Prince Bernhard of the Netherlands from his official roles and to investigations in Italy and West Germany.
US law. The revelations led Congress to pass the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act in 1977.

Why it matters

The Lockheed scandal showed corporate bribery reaching the highest levels of government in a democracy, and led directly to international anti-bribery law.

Sources

US Senate Subcommittee on Multinational Corporations, hearings on Lockheed Aircraft Corporation, February 1976.
Tokyo District Court, judgment in the Lockheed case (Tanaka), October 12, 1983.
The New York Times, "Tanaka Guilty in Lockheed Case," October 12, 1983.