Japanese idol of Brazilian origin accuses music producer of sexual assault

Singer Kauan Okamoto, 26, son of Brazilians and born in Japan, revealed this Wednesday (12) that he was sexually assaulted by producer Johnny Kitagawa, who launched several boy bands and died in 2019, aged 87. Okamoto was a member of the group Johnny’s Junior.

Kitagawa was a producer in Japan for several male groups of the so-called J-Pop, such as SMAP, TOKIO and Arashi. Rumors that he sexually abused his artists had been running since 1999, when two reporters for a Japanese magazine published testimonies of several adults who, when young, were allegedly attacked by Kitagawa in a dormitory he kept in his house to house candidates for the title. stardom.

An idol in Japan, Okamoto was born in Aichi Ken Prefecture. With dual nationality, the artist sings in Japanese and Portuguese.

Former member of the group Johnny’s Junior, Kauan Okamoto told a press conference in Tokyo that he was sexually assaulted by Kitagawa “15 to 20 times during the four years he worked for the agency Johnny and Associates”, which dominated the Japanese entertainment industry during decades. The Japanese-Brazilian was 15 years old when he began to suffer from Kitagawa’s abuse.

The singer is one of the first people to publicly denounce the sexual abuse committed by Kitagawa against young people, an issue that has been discussed for several years and that has returned to prominence with a recent BBC documentary, “Predator: The Secret Scandal of J-Pop (Predator: J-Pop’s secret scandal)”.

HUNDREDS OF AGGRESSIONS

“I hope other victims will also come forward, all of them,” Okamoto said at the press conference, organized by the Foreign Correspondents Club of Japan. He stated that he believed that “from 100 to 200 young people” who worked for the agency were also assaulted by Kitagawa.

“I also want the agency directors, and Johnny himself if he were here today, to know what happened and make sure these things don’t happen again.”

Accusations of child abuse and sexual assault have loomed over Kitagawa for years, but most whistleblowers have remained anonymous. Kitagawa was never criminally charged.

According to the musician, it was common for the young talents who worked for Kitagawa to spend the night on the manager’s roof, which had a whirlpool, bar and karaoke.

Okamoto claimed that the first time Kitagawa abused him, the businessman lay down on his bed, started touching the young man’s genitals and forced him to perform oral sex. The next day, Kitagawa handed over 10,000 yen (R$375), without revealing why, the artist said.

AFP contacted the agency Johnny and Associates, but did not receive a response until the publication of this report. The Foreign Correspondents’ Club of Japan also said the company refused to answer its questions.