Kawasoe's predecessor, Takemune Kimura, stepped down in 1997 over allegations of illegal company payments to corporate racketeers. On Sunday, police searched Mitsubishi headquarters, two factories and the homes of two officials, confiscating records of meetings of Mitsubishi officials discussing recalls, consumer complaints and computer disks containing records of recalls and consumers' claims. Transportation Minister Hajime Morita said Friday that the government and police were preparing charges against the carmaker, which the ministry says hid about 64,000 consumer complaints for more than 20 years. A plan under consideration would fine Mitsubishi 4.2 million yen ($37,800) at most, and no Mitsubishi executives or employees would face prosecution. Since last month, Mitsubishi has recalled a mammoth 620,000 vehicles for defects, including failing brakes, fuel leaks and malfunctioning clutches. The recalls came only after government inspectors found documents about auto defects hidden in a company locker room.