Before the conclusion of the legal battle, he was 84 years old
The president of Tokyo Electric Power (Tepco), Tsunehisa Katsumata, who sadly hit the headlines during the Fukushima disaster in March 2011, has died at the age of 84.
His disappearance precedes the conclusion of the trial for his alleged inability to prevent the disaster at the nuclear power plant, triggered by the magnitude 9 earthquake and tsunami. Katsumata was indicted in 2016 on charges of professional negligence, along with other Tepco executives at the time, for causing a number of deaths and injuries. Last year, however, the Tokyo High Court issued a not guilty verdict, saying it was impossible to predict the giant tsunami, and that the company could not be held liable for failing to close the plant. The legal battle then continued all the way to the Supreme Court. Following his death, the case is expected to be closed under the Code of Criminal Procedure.
Originally from Tokyo, and a graduate of the capital’s prestigious University of the same name, Katsumata became executive director of the operator in 2002, before taking over as president in 2008. He resigned in June 2012, when the government technically took over the company . Katsumata and former Tepco executives were also sued by the company’s shareholders, and sentenced by the Tokyo District Court in 2022 to pay approximately 13,000 billion yen (equivalent to 78.5 billion euros) in damages. The case is still ongoing after the defendants appealed the sentence. Tepco said Katsumata died on October 21.
