| Japanese archaeologist admits to many fake discoveries |
A once-renowned Japanese archaeologist has admitted to lying about a host of findings, a newspaper reports.
Shinichi Fujimura was disgraced last year when he was caught faking a discovery at a digging site.
At the time he reportedly said there were no other fakes but an investigative committee believes he falsified more than 20 other discoveries.
The Mainichi newspaper cites unidentified members of the panel as saying that Fujimura has now admitted faking the discoveries in central and northern Japan.
Fujimura was uncovered last fall when a reporter for a major newspaper secretly videotaped him burying tools at a site in northern Japan, then pounding the earth down on top of them with his foot.
Fujimura's uncanny ability to make surprising finds had earned him the nickname "The Hand of God".
Among the fakes were stone artifacts Fujimura had claimed were 100,000 years old. Most of the sites were dug in 1999 or 2000.
The panel is continuing its investigation, says the Mainichi.
Fujimura, who worked at an electronics maker until quitting in 1999, began studying archaeology on his own after he graduated from high school. He did not attend college, colleagues say.
Fujimura apologised profusely last year at a news conference just after the scandal broke, saying he gave into temptation and the pressure to succeed. He has since dropped from view and according to a colleague is in a mental hospital.
Story filed: 00:13 Saturday 29th September 2001
|
