According to media reports, prosecutors suspect former justice minister Katsuyuki Kawai and his wife Anri Kawai of offering millions of yen in cash to people prior to the upper house elections in 2019, in which his wife won a seat.
Voter support for Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, who had close ties to the minister, has declined over his handling of the coronavirus outbreak, uproar over efforts to extend top prosecutors' retirement age, and some questions about the government’s support of tourism and smaller companies.
Earlier, Shinzo Abe called on residents not to relax with the onset of hot weather, since high temperatures do not mean the absence of the coronavirus infection, and cited the situation in Qatar with a traditionally hot climate.
The overall number of COVID-19 cases in Japan has reached 17,628, including 931 fatalities, according to the World Health Organisation (WHO).