Yuji Naka, the former SEGA creator who was lead programmer on the original Sonic the Hedgehog, has been arrested in Tokyo for alleged insider trading.
In this case, Naka allegedly used privileged information received in his position at Square Enix to inform investment decisions.
Square Enix published a mobile game called Dragon Quest Tact in partnership with developer Aiming. Naka is claimed to have bought over 10,000 shares in Aiming before the game was even announced for approximately 2.8 million Japanese Yen (JPY).
Two other individuals at Square Enix have been arrested on similar charges. Taisuke Sasaki and Fumiaki Suzuki were arrested yesterday.
While Sasaki and Suzuki bought many more shares than Naka did (approximately 162,000 vs. 10,000), Yuji Naka’s high profile status as the game industry veteran Sonic the Hedgehog, Nights into Dreams, and yes, even Balan Wonderworld, makes it all the more shocking.
At the time of writing it’s unclear if any of the suspects cleared out of their positions and if so, how much profit they made.