Saburo Sato, senior secretary to former Liberal Democratic Party Secretary General Koichi Kato, has resigned from Kato's office to take responsibility for a scandal involving allegations of income tax evasion, sources close to Kato said Saturday.
Sato met with Kato on Friday night in Tokyo to offer his resignation, which Kato accepted, they said.
According to the sources, Sato said at the meeting, "It is regrettable that I have caused such trouble. I will cooperate with the tax authorities in their investigation."
He also sent letters to senior officials of support groups for Kato, in which he said he will do his utmost to prove his innocence, the sources said.
Although Kato has said he will follow developments in the investigation by the tax authorities and the Tokyo District Public Prosecutors Office, there have been increasing calls -- even within the LDP and Kato's own faction -- for him to take quick action to deal with the issue.
Sato has been questioned by prosecutors for allegedly evading income tax by concealing payments he received from construction companies in return for "favors" in connection with public works projects.