highlights
Trial starts for Japanese star Noriko Sakai
(China Daily)
Updated: 2009-10-27 09:24
Pleading guilty, she wants to quit acting and nurse the elderly
TOKYO: More than 6,000 people crowded outside a Tokyo courthouse yesterday as Japanese actress Noriko Sakai pleaded guilty to drug use and prosecutors sought a prison sentence in a trial that has caused a media frenzy.
 Thirty-eight-year-old Japanese pop singer and actress Noriko Sakai wipes her tears during a news conference in Tokyo September 17, 2009. [Agencies]
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The 38-year-old Sakai was among the first Japanese actresses to gain popularity in Asia, and her arrest in August threatened to shatter her wholesome image.
Sakai was arrested in August for drug possession after her husband, Yuichi Takaso, was caught with stimulants a week earlier. When Takaso was arrested, Sakai disappeared for a week with her 10- year-old son, before eventually turning herself in at a Tokyo police station on August 7.
Since her arrest, it has been alleged that Sakai had been taking drugs for at least the last two years, and in his trial, which started last week, Takaso has claimed that his wife is a drug addict.
The scandal has dominated headlines for months in Japan, and authorities have said they will crack down on drug use in the entertainment industry.
"My husband encouraged me to use (the drug), but it was my own decision. It was a very thoughtless act," the Kyodo News agency quoted Sakai as telling the court yesterday.
She is charged with drug use in violation of an anti-stimulant law. The violation carries a penalty of up to 10 years in prison, though most first violations bring suspended sentences.
Prison time sought
Prosecutors yesterday demanded 1-1/2 years in prison for Sakai at Tokyo District Court, where more than 6,600 people lined up in the rain for 20 seats to watch, a court official said on condition of anonymity, citing department rules.
A ruling is expected on November 9, court officials said.
After 41 days in custody, Sakai was released last month on $55,000 bail.
Her husband is being tried separately on similar charges. Prosecutors in the case involving her husband, Takaso, asked that he be given a sentence of two years in prison for possession. His lawyers, however, argued that his sentence should be suspended as he has expressed remorse for his crime. Takaso is expected to be sentenced in November.
Sakai said she wanted to divorce her husband and make a fresh start, Kyodo reported.
"I must correct myself. I feel miserable," she said, adding that she wants to quit entertainment and study nursing care for the elderly.
Fans rush for seats
Yesterday morning thousands of people tried to get seats for the trial, despite the fact that only 20 people can fit in the courtroom. Most of those waiting said they were fans of the star.
Prosecutors said that her influence as a celebrity meant she should not be handled with leniency.
Sakai rose to fame in the late '80s as a pop singer and later branched out into acting. Apart from being popular in Japan, she also has a significant fan base in other Asian countries, such as China and South Korea. The drugs scandal has seriously damaged her squeaky clean image, but many in Japan remain supportive of the actress.
AP-Xinhua
