Daily Archives: November 29, 2008

Former talento Haga Kenji (47) and former world boxing champion Watanabe Jiro (53) have both been acquitted on charges of fraud and attempted extortion at the Osaka District Court. The two were arrested a year and five months ago on charges of swindling some ¥370 million from a private investor. They were accused of selling the man shares in a medical consulting company at a hugely inflated price and then threatening him when he tried to get his money back after the company went bankrupt. Prosecutors had sought a sentence of eight years and four months for both the accused. The court case began in January, with both men proclaiming their innocence, and ended in May. But lawyers succeeded in having the case reopened for further examination of witnesses, insisting that the alleged victim had known the true value of the shares he bought. In reading out the “not guilty” verdict on Friday, the judge said there had been reasonable doubt regarding the alleged victim’s testimony. On hearing the verdict, a tearful Haga turned to his wife Mayu (31) – the two were married only eight months at the time of Haga’a arrest. As Haga himself said to reporters after leaving the court, it is extremely rare for a Japanese court case to end in a verdict of not guilty. He is said to be in discussions with his former management agency about a possible return to show business.

Earlier stories:

Haga Kenji Arrested on Extortion Charges

Haga Kenji, Watanabe Jiro Extortion Case Starts

It was revealed yesterday that former Morning Musume (profile) member Iida Kaori (27) lost her baby son earlier this year. Iida and former 7 House vocalist Kenji (29) had a shotgun wedding in July of last year and Iida had a baby boy in January. What wasn’t widely known was that the boy suffered from medical problems that kept him hospitalized until April. He returned to live with his parents but his condition suddenly worsened in the summer and he died on July 27. The cause of death was given as chronic kidney failure. Iida spent the next couple of months in shock and mourning but recently has started to get back on her feet again. She sent a fax to the media on Friday to clarify the story and also say that she has decided to resume her singing career, which she ended after the Morning Musume 10th anniversary concert in September 2007. She plans to take part in a stage production featuring older members of the Hello! Project troupe in Tokyo from January 10. “Living a positive and cheerful life is my memorial to my son,” she said. “For his sake I want to live my life to the fullest.”