Kento Nagayama was arrested by the police in June for possessing more than 1.6g of dried cannabis at his apartment. Photo: Screengrab from NTV News/YouTube
Japanese actor Kento Nagayama has pleaded guilty to drug possession on Monday (Aug 28).
The 34-year-old was arrested by the police in June for possessing more than 1.6g of dried cannabis at his apartment in Meguro, Tokyo. He was released on bail of three million yen (RM95,215) in July.
At his trial at the Tokyo District Court on Monday, it was revealed that Nagayama used cannabis for the first time when he was in his second year of junior high school – the equivalent of Secondary 2 – at the recommendation of a senior. He felt uncomfortable after taking the drug and did not continue doing so.
He took it again when he was 18 or 19, after he was persuaded by a friend.
The actor claimed that he used it to relax or when he could not sleep, according to various reports by the Japanese media.
The prosecution is seeking a jail sentence of six months, while the defendant is seeking a suspended sentence. The judge will give his verdict on Friday.
Nagayama is the younger brother of actor Eita Nagayama (Monster, 2023), 40.
Kento Nagayama made his debut in 2007 on the TV series Ojiisan Sensei and won the Newcomer of the Year award in 2011 at the Japan Academy Film Prize – known as the Oscars of Japan – for his role in the movie Softboys.
After the drug scandal in June, a movie Nagayama acted in, Tokyo Revengers 2: Bloody Halloween – Destiny, was released on schedule later that month.
However, he withdrew from the prime-time historical drama series Hikaru Kimi E, which is slated to air in 2024. – The Straits Times/Asia News Network
