Shinichi Fujimura - Aftermath

Aftermath

In a series of articles in the Japanese magazine Shukan Bunshun published on January 25, February 1 and March 15, 2001, the magazine alleged that the stone tools discovered at the Hijiridaki cave site (聖嶽洞窟遺跡) in Ōita Prefecture had also been forgeries, and indicated that Mitsuo Kagawa, a professor at Beppu University, had been involved in that hoax. Kagawa committed suicide and left a suicide note in which he pleaded his innocence.

His family filed a defamation suit against Shukan Bunshun the same year. The Ōita district Court and the Fukuoka High Court decided to order the magazine to pay the damages and issue an apology to the family of Kagawa. The magazine appealed to the Supreme Court of Japan, although the appeal was rejected in September 2004. An apology statement was published in the September 2, 2004 issue.