Another case of high-profile illegal Japanese gambling has hit the country, as a pop star has been referred to prosecutors. Tokyo police made the move Monday to send legal papers to legal teams over a member of JO1, Shion Tsurubo, who’d been caught gambling.
The 24-year-old admitted to it in recent comments, claiming that it was too “easy” to access the websites. However, it isn’t looking like an easy time for Tsurubo, as The Japan Times reports that the Tokyo Metropolitan Police have noted that “strict punishment” should come down on him.
Speaking in the report, Tsurubo said:
“I became obsessed with online gambling for a while because it’s so easy to access with a smartphone.”
It’s reported that the boy band star had been using the website K8 and spent a whopping 15 million yen ($104,000). It’s estimated that he lost 7.1 million yen ($49,258.18).
The law comes down hard on Japanese celebrity scandals
Celebrities embroiled in illegal happenings tend to have their careers dashed. Drugs, gambling, and other illicit activities have had actors and other celebrities erased from projects they were involved with. One case involved video game developer Ryu Ga Gotoku – behind the Yakuza/Like a Dragon series – removing an actor’s face from Yakuza 4 after a drug scandal.
So far, he’s been suspended from activities with his talent agency, Lapone Entertainment, for 10 days since May 31.
Japan has made recent changes to the law to make it even harder to access gambling sites, but the country might already be behind the game. VPNs and other proxy services can still be easily accessed in the country, opening up the internet regardless of location.
Gambling addiction is on the rise in Japan, and the country is desperately trying to crack down on it. Its methods have resulted in high-profile cases with celebrity comedians and a massive 28 billion yen bust ($194,373,579.12) last month.
