Photo/Illutration Dentsu Inc. headquarters in Tokyo's Minato Ward (Asahi Shimbun file photo)

A former official with advertising giant Dentsu Inc. may challenge part of the indictment against him over bid-rigging in the run-up to the Tokyo Olympics.

Koji Henmi, 55, a former assistant director of Dentsu’s sports division, admitted rigging bids for Olympic test events on the opening day of his trial at the Tokyo District Court on July 27.

But he did not address an allegation of bid-rigging for the actual Olympic events. This suggests his lawyers may challenge that element.

Henmi is the second individual to reach trial for bid-rigging. The first was Yasuo Mori, 56, who served as deputy executive director of the operations bureau of the Tokyo Olympics organizing committee.

Henmi, Mori and representatives of advertising companies in charge of the bidding are accused of deciding between February and July 2018 which companies would be awarded bids for Olympic test events as well as competitions during the Tokyo Olympics itself.

The contracts totaled 43.7 billion yen ($312 million).

It is thought that Henmi’s lawyers are focusing on the fact that contracts for the actual events were discretionary and did not involve competitive bidding.

But prosecutors have argued that the rigged contracts covered both the test and actual sporting events as a single package.

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