The debate has focused unusual public scrutiny on Japan’s 2,600 public prosecutors, who are a force unlike any in the justice systems of the United States and other Western democracies. The Prosecutors Office has the right not only to choose whom to investigate and when, but to arrest and detain suspects for weeks before filing charges, in effect giving them powers of the police, attorneys general and even judges all rolled into one.
Indeed, media experts say the prosecutors enjoy close ties with the major news media outlets, which has led to generally positive coverage of the investigation into Mr. Ozawa.