Naoki Hoshino was heavily involved in politics leading up to the Japanese Aggression in Manchuria. After the Manchurian invasion and establishment of the puppet state of Manchukuo under the last Chinese Emperor, Pu-Yi, Hoshino set-up the financial infrastructure to rule the region. Overseeing the creation and development of the State Opium Monopoly Bureau, Hoshino imported narcotics to lessen resistance to Japanese rule. As a result of his success in Manchuria, Tojo appointed him as Chief Cabinet Secretary. During the trial, he was represented by George Carrington Williams and Joseph C. Howard. His Japanese Chief Counsel was Goichiro Fujii with Masao Migita and Matsuru Heisuke serving as his Japanese Associate Counsel. The Tribunal found him guilty of counts 1, 27, 29, 31, and 32 and sentenced him to life imprisonment. He was paroled in 1955.
