sonic the hedgehog Co-creator Yuji Naka was arrested Friday by Japanese authorities for his involvement in insider trading with other former Square Enix employees. The Tokyo District Attorney’s Office said Naka obtained confidential information about a new dragon quest mobile game, while still employed at Square Enix.
Former employee Taisuke Sazaki also obtained sensitive information about Tact Dragon Quest being created jointly by Square Enix and Aiming, another co-production company. Sazaki and another former employee, Fumiaki Suzuki, purchased 162,000 shares between December 2019 and February 2020.
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Sonic The Hedgehog Creator Under Fire For Insider Trading
Naka, 57, was aware of the deal and bought 10,000 shares for 2.8 million yen before the announcement. Square Enix said in its official statement:
“Today, some media reported that former Square Enix employees are being investigated for alleged insider trading. We have fully cooperated with the requests of the Securities and Exchange Surveillance Commission. We deeply regret the great concern this has caused to all concerned. We have handled this incident strictly, including internal disciplinary action taken against suspected employees.”
Based on the ongoing investigation, Yuji Naka hoped to take advantage of the increased shared price after the game was released. It is also unconfirmed if the creator sold his shares.
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Twitter fans react to Yuji Naka’s arrest
Meanwhile, the public reacted to the news. Check out their tweets:
…didn’t go fast enough, eh?
—Dan Smith (@0DanSmith) November 18, 2022
Hey it’s a white collar crime so does it really matter
— dantomthief (@DantomThief) November 18, 2022
that’s what he gets for playing with dunkey
— charles (@odeiomisoginia) November 18, 2022
Too bad they didn’t get it for his biggest crime of all Balan Wonderworld
— Nutty Royale (@NuttyRoyale) November 18, 2022
When Balan Wonderworld bombs but you still have to pay for the car
— House party rocker (@healthcare_plz) November 18, 2022
Fans would recognize the famous Naka sonic the hedgehog mascot alongside artist Naoto Ohshima. He led the program for the original 1991 series and sequels, which have become one of the most successful and popular franchises in the world.
Yuji Naka left Sega in 2006 and later joined Square Enix in 2018 to work on the ill-fated game Balan’s Wonderland. It was met with negative reviews and much controversy. The creator later revealed that he was kicked out of the project six months before it was released in public.
Source: The edge
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