A Japanese man who squandered a Covid allowance of 338,000 euros in online casinos after receiving this sum by mistake has decided to reimburse the authorities "
little by little
", his lawyer told local media on Wednesday.
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"
I'm really sorry I spent it all
," said the man from Abu township in western Japan, according to his lawyer, who said he lost the money gambling.
In question, a confusion of local officials
The tidy sum of 46.3 million yen (338,000 euros) was transferred to a single household last month following a confusion between local officials who were organizing an aid distribution program for the benefit of 463 households in low income affected by the pandemic.
The recipient of the 46.3 million yen, believed to be 24, has not been identified.
On May 11, the municipality announced that it was taking legal action against him after his repeated refusal to return the tidy sum.
Today he finally agreed to '
return the money, even if it has to be done little by little
', his lawyer said, quoting his client.
According to the municipality, officials had even been accompanied by the young man's mother to visit him at his workplace and try to convince him, but in vain.
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The mayor refuses to withdraw his complaint
Abu Mayor Norihiko Hanada told reporters he was "
sincerely happy
" with the change in his attitude, but said he would not withdraw the complaint against him.
“
I hope he tells the truth in court
,” he added.
Norihiko Hanada previously claimed that if the man had spent the money on gambling, he would find it "
unforgivable
".