Sonic the Hedgehog creator Yuji Naka was arrested for insider trading, Shocking news of 2022. All you need to know.

Image: Square Enix

Image: Square Enix

Yuji Naka, former head of developer Sonic Team and the co-creator of Sonic the Hedgehog, has been arrested for insider trading in Tokyo.

Image: Square Enix

The news, first detailed by Japanese news site FNN, has been certified by the Asahi Shimbun paper in an English-language report.

Image: Square Enix

Naka is claimed to have purchased stock in developer Aiming in mid-2020, in light of inside data that it would be developing a Dragon Quest mobile game.

Image: Square Enix

Dragon Quest Tact. At that point, distributer Square Enix's partnership with Pointing on the game was not yet open.

Image: Square Enix

Yuji Naka was working at Square Enix on the ill-fated and doomed platformer Balan Wonderworld, as per the reports.

Image: Square Enix

The arrest was made by the special investigations unit of the Tokyo District Public Prosecutors Office.

Image: Square Enix

Yuji Naka purchased 10,000 shares in Aiming for about 2.8 million yen ($20,000) after knowing about Dragon Quest Tact in late January 2020.

Image: Square Enix

He was probably hoping to profit from an increase in the share price after the game was announced and released.

Image: Square Enix

A day earlier, former Square Enix employees Taisuke Sazaki and Fumiaki Suzuki were arrested on similar charges.