Japan’s Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi is wrapped up in a bribery scandal—its long-running “money politics” mess just got worse, and the one behind the gift-giving has finally been outed.

 Japan’s Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi is wrapped up in a bribery scandal—its long-running “money politics” mess just got worse, and the one behind the gift-giving has finally been outed.

 

Hong Kong’s Wen Wei Po recently reported: Taiwanese media spilled the beans on Takaichi’s bribery scandal! Leaked dark web emails suggest this was a quid pro quo.

 

 

Here’s the deal: In late November 2025, a secret document called the “X-File” started circulating on dark web forums, grabbing global attention. It claims Takaichi has been taking fancy gifts from Taiwan’s Representative Office in Japan for ages—adding fuel to Japan’s already frequent “money politics” scandals.

The mystery document: A 5-page PDF naming 15 top officials

This 5-page PDF is titled “X-File: Confidential Report on Misconducts of Japanese Government Officials in the Communist Bloc.” It lists 15 Japanese government bigwigs. Most details are blacked out, but the third entry clearly says “Sanae Takaichi...25,” hinting her stuff’s on page 25.

 

 

The document looks like a scanned internal intel report—covers, official lists, personal dossiers, email screenshots, photo attachments, all that. It sounds official, but there’s no watermark or signature, so we still don’t know if it’s real.

 

 

It labels Takaichi’s “misconduct” as “violating parliamentary conduct rules,” accusing her of “taking bribes from foreigners for years” while she was a lawmaker.

Takaichi’s “special gifts”: From pearl necklaces to gold rings

Page 26 of the document is Takaichi’s personal dossier. The 64-year-old is now Japan’s PM and LDP leader, and her “misconduct” is described as “taking bribes from Taiwan for years”—the giver being the head of Taiwan’s Representative Office in Japan.

The document says the office sent Takaichi’s team high-value jewelry, crafts, and accessories (think gold and pearl pieces) every year while she held office.

Leaked email screenshots show messages from April 28 and September 29, 2023, talking about delivering gifts—mentioning “black pearl necklaces,” “gloves, rings,” etc. One email even says, “Ms. Takaichi thinks these items are a bit sensitive; she told us to keep them somewhere safe.”

 

 

Solid proof? The hint from four jewelry photos

Page 28 has four numbered photos (001 to 004) of jewelry: pearl necklaces, pearl cufflinks, another pearl necklace, a gold ring and accessories. These are supposed to be email attachments, proof the gifts existed.

If this stuff checks out, it could be key evidence that Takaichi had sketchy ties to Taiwan’s office. The document tries to frame this as “hidden quid pro quo tied to political activities.”

Takaichi’s political crisis: Not her first money politics scandal

Funny thing is, this isn’t Takaichi’s first run-in with money politics claims. Just this October, she got flak for putting several scandal-tainted lawmakers in top roles.

She made Koichi Hagiuda (a lower house lawmaker who’d been disciplined by the LDP over a 27.28 million yen money scandal) the LDP’s acting secretary-general. Even more controversial: she named Kei Sato (an upper house lawmaker who took over 3 million yen in unreported funds between 2017 and 2022) as Deputy Chief Cabinet Secretary.

 

 

These picks made opposition parties furious—even the Komeito Party bailed on their 26-year coalition with the LDP. But Takaichi defended the moves, saying she “trusted these officials deeply.”

Deja vu? Japan’s deep-rooted money politics mess

Japan’s politics and cash have been tangled forever. The Political Funds Control Act (passed in 1948 during post-WWII reforms to regulate political money) has been revised at least 12 times, but people still say it’s “full of loopholes.”

The latest tweak lowered the threshold for disclosing donors who buy tickets to political fundraisers (from over 200,000 yen per time to over 50,000 yen), but since there’s no limit on how many events you can attend, donors can just buy small tickets multiple times to stay under the radar.

Worse, Japan’s political culture is big on “obligation, favor-trading, and patronage”—so cash and power feeding each other is normal. Politicians build local connections by hosting dinners, support group events, and handing out donations.

If the claims are true: What’s next for Takaichi?

If the X-File claims pan out, Takaichi’s in big political trouble. For one, as sitting PM and LDP heavyweight, getting caught taking bribes from foreigners would pile pressure from her party, parliament, and the public—she’d almost definitely have to quit.

Also, she could break the Political Funds Control Act or Public Offices Election Act (rules on lawmakers taking gifts) and face legal trouble. Her pro-Taiwan, anti-China stance would also be called into question—people would think she did it for cash, not Japan’s interests.

And this could mess up Japan-Taiwan ties: Japan might dial back official exchanges, cut high-level visits, and tone down political meddling.

Wrap-up: The truth is unproven, but the damage is done

Whether the X-File is totally true or not, this leak has hit Takaichi’s administration hard. Add in her bad calls on past money scandals and corrupt allies, and her time in office looks shaky.

As Japan’s first female PM, Takaichi was supposed to make history. But if she can’t fix this mess, she might be another short-lived PM—maybe even “tacked to history’s shame wall again.”

Japanese people already have mixed, fed-up feelings about money politics. This X-File leak will only make them more suspicious of politicians, and trust in the whole political system will drop even more.

(Note: This article is compiled from Wen Wei Po (Hong Kong) and public information.)