A former Niigata policeman arrested for allegedly tampering with traffic violation records may also have been covering up speeding violations committed by his colleagues and retired officers, investigative sources said Monday.
The prefectural force has begun an internal probe into fresh suspicions surrounding former traffic section superintendent Norio Osawa, 60, the sources said.
According to the sources, Osawa, upon requests from higher-ranking Niigata officers, attempted to cover up traffic violation records of about 10 former and current officers, including those from outside Niigata.
The incidents he tried to cover up took place between 1998 and March. They were all speeding violations detected by automatic roadside radar systems that capture photographic images, and thus the license plate numbers, of speeders, the sources alleged.