Japan's First Overseas Organ Transplant Broker Case: Three Suspects Arrested for Referring Patients to Cambodia

(CNA Tokyo, July 9, Comprehensive Foreign News) Three individuals, including the head of the general incorporated association "International Medical Consultation Room," were arrested today by police on suspicion of violating the "Organ Transplant Law" for brokering an organ transplant in Cambodia for a male patient in his 70s in exchange for payment.

According to reports from Japan Broadcasting Corporation (NHK), Kyodo News, and Yomiuri Shimbun, a joint task force comprising police from Tokyo and two other prefectures transferred three individuals to prosecutors today for investigation. These included Kikuichi Jintatsu, 66, the former director of the non-profit organization "Support Group for Patients with Difficult Diseases" and the actual head of the "International Medical Consultation Room," and Ando Takaki, 66, an executive of the "International Medical Consultation Room."

The task force stated that the "International Medical Consultation Room" was also referred to prosecutors for the same offense.

Police said the three suspects are suspected of introducing a man in his 70s living in Tokyo to undergo a kidney transplant surgery in Cambodia between November last year and January this year, and received a total remuneration of over 12 million yen (approximately NT$2.4 million).

Police revealed that the male patient in his 70s was admitted to the Preah Ket Mealea Hospital in Phnom Penh, Cambodia, in early January. Subsequently, the organ donor and others gathered at the hospital and pledged that the organ donation was not for financial gain or coercion, while also promising not to disclose any information related to the organ transplant.

Furthermore, before leaving the country, the male patient transferred a total of approximately 12 million yen (approximately NT$2.4 million) to the accounts of Kikuichi Jintatsu and others under the guise of "gift for the Chinese surgeon." He also personally handed over the surgical fee of 157,500 US dollars (approximately NT$5.07 million) to the doctor locally as instructed by Kikuichi and others.

In addition, police investigations found that the three suspects used the website of the "International Medical Consultation Room" to recruit patients wishing to undergo organ transplants overseas, and have so far brokered for at least four individuals.

The reports indicated that patients who undergo transplant surgery need to regularly take immunosuppressants to suppress the body's rejection of foreign organs, making it crucial to choose a medical institution that can provide continuous treatment after returning to their home country. The "International Medical Consultation Room" stated on its official website that even after the patient returns home, "we will be responsible for assisting you in connecting with subsequent medical care."

However, investigations revealed that multiple patients reported that upon returning to their home country, the hospitals introduced by the "International Medical Consultation Room" could not provide adequate treatment. Some were even refused treatment when they visited the hospital, or were told by the hospital staff, "We will only provide treatment if you agree to report to the police."

The reports added that Kikuichi Jintatsu was arrested for the same offense in February 2023. For about 20 years prior to 2023, Kikuichi had been arranging for patients wishing to undergo transplant surgery to go to overseas hospitals through the now-dissolved non-profit organization "Support Group for Patients with Difficult Diseases." Police believe that Kikuichi Jintatsu, after being released on bail, resumed his activities using the "International Medical Consultation Room" as a window to solicit individuals willing to undergo transplants.

Police believe that Kikuichi Jintatsu and the other two suspects engaged in illegal organ transplant mediation without adequately arranging for the patients' post-return medical care, and are currently conducting further investigations into this matter. (Compiled by Li Jing) 0709

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