Japanese animation studio ufotable, best known for their anime adaptions of the popular Fate anime franchise, is under investigation by the Tokyo Regional Taxation Bureau for alleged tax evasion.
Weekly Bunshun Digital magazine reports that the Bureau conducted searches in the company’s studio and two cafes located in Tokyo’s Suginami ward.
Hikaru Kondo, founder and president of ufotable, is suspected of directly receiving revenue from merchandise sales in “bundles of cash” instead of depositing it to the company’s bank account.
As of press time, neither Kondo nor ufotable have been formally charged.
A spokesperson for the Tokyo Regional Taxation Bureau told Bunshun that they do not comment on specific cases.
The anime studio directed all inquiries about the case to Kondo, who also declined to respond.
Kondo founded ufotable in the year 2000. The animation studio is renowned for their various anime adaptations of the Fate franchise, including Fate/Zero and the ongoing Fate/stay night: Heaven’s Feel movie trilogy.
The anime studio were also responsible for the anime adaptation of The Garden of Sinners and Katsugeki: Touken Ranbu.
Their latest anime series, Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba, is set to premiere in Japanese television on April 6.
