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Statement of Yakumaru (18 Aug 47). Akita was in charge of all Staff Officers and supervised their work, was also in charge of tactical strategy and military training for WA. Akita did not have any direct responsibility regarding handling of Prisoners but should know of what actions were taken regarding the handling. Sometime in April 1945, Akita was at his desk next to Sato, Yakumaru was also there, heard Komomori ask Sato to release some Prisoners so that he could take them to KIU for experimental operations. Sato told Komori he would see what he could do. Akita later told Yakumaru this. Change in story: Akita told Yakumaru that Komori came to see Sato very frequently, but did not tell him what they talked about, i.e., that Komori came to see Sato to get Prisoners to be used for experimental operations. In the middle of September 1945, Fukushima, Sato and Akita and Yakumaru met at the Keigo School, and agreed on a plan to keep the atrocities on WA -Hq secret. It was discussed that a false report would foe made to the Hiroshima MG, stating that the WA Prisoners had been sent to Hiroshima. There struck by the atomic bomb and killed, thus covering the illegal execution of 39 Prisoners. However Fukushima decided that the Allied Forces would become suspicious, so it was decided by all present to state that 9 or 10 were so sent to Hiroshima and Fukushima stated that he would think of another plan by which they could deceive the Allied Forces to the remaining 31. Sato was to instruct the doctors who had participated in the operations on the American Prisoners of War. In the early part of September 1945, in the Staff Room, at WA Hq, Sato stated that if Yakumaru were questioned about the operations of Prisoners at KIU he was to state that Komori took the Prisoners on his own initiative and secretly operated on them. He decided to blame Komori because he was dead. Sato said that he would instruct Ishiyama that if questioned, he should state that permission had been secured from Yokoyama. Fukushima told Yakumaru that if he were questioned by the Allied Forces, regarding the remaining 30 Prisoners, he was to state that the 30 had been taken to Tokyo by 2 planes, both lost enroute, this plan was agreed to by Sato, Oguri, Yukino, and Kusumoto. Fukushima instrucred Akita at the Keigo School, in the latter part of September, to tell the Allied Forces that S Prisoners had been sent to Hiroshima, these being those sent to KIU, that the remaining 31 had been sent to Tokyo by plane. Akita then knew about the operations of Prisoners, at KIU, because he attended the meeting in the middle part of September 1945, in which plans were made to deceive the Allied Forces |