Two ex-Nomura employees arrested for alleged sexual assault

[TOKYO] Two former Nomura Holdings employees have been arrested by Japanese police on suspicion of sexually assaulting a woman after getting her drunk, NHK reported.

The two were staff members of Japan's biggest brokerage when the incident happened at a hotel in Tokyo in February, the national broadcaster said.

Nomura confirmed the arrest of former workers but declined to offer details, saying an investigation is under way.

The suspects, 25 and 28, plied the woman with drinks at a restaurant before bringing her to the hotel and taking turns to assault her, a Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department spokesman said.

"We deeply apologise,'' said Kenji Yamashita, a Nomura spokesman.

"We will thoroughly educate our employees, and we will make efforts to regain public trust."

The arrests come as Nomura works to repair its image after a leak of market-sensitive information resulted in a regulatory penalty.

Shareholder support for chief executive officer Koji Nagai plunged to a record low following that incident.

BLOOMBERG