PUBLISHED ONApril 03, 2025 5:56 AMBySyarifah NadhirahA two-month investigation headed by an independent team commissioned by Fuji TV concluded on March 31 that host Masahiro Nakai had indeed committed sexual assault against a female newscaster at the network.
This comes after the December 2024 reports accusing the 52-year-old, who was a celebrity presenter at the station, of paying the unnamed woman a settlement fee after sexually assaulting her.
There were also allegations that Fuji TV had tried to cover up the scandal.
Sponsors subsequently pulled their advertisements from Fuji TV and Masahiro was dropped from his shows.
The latter, formerly an idol in one of Asia's top boy bands Smap in the 1990s, retired in January this year.
According to media reports, a nearly 300-page report from the probe revealed the woman was first invited by a senior TV executive to a dinner party hosted by Masahiro in May 2023 where other people were present.
Two days later, Masahiro invited her to dinner again and she felt forced to attend it as she feared declining would affect her career. She was alone with him and assaulted.
The lawyer-led panel called the incident a "serious infringement of human rights" and refuted Fuji TV executives' previous claim that it was a "private issue".
"Although there was no involvement of [other] employees on the day, it was not just a private matter between the two people and we have determined that it was an extension of business duties," said lawyer Akira Takeuchi.
Masahiro was found to have paid the woman 90 million yen (S$807,000) where they both signed a non-disclosure agreement, which the former has refused to lift to date, preventing the panel from finding out more details regarding the assault.
The panel also singled out a production manager at Fuji TV who, among other acts, delivered one million yen to her as solatium on behalf of Masahiro.
In addition, the investigation uncovered an ingrained culture of harassment at Fuji TV with other incidents of inappropriate behaviour.
In two incidents highlighted in media reports, male employees reportedly left business meetings midway, leaving behind female colleagues alone with some unnamed male celebrities and TV personalities. The women then suffered sexual harassment.
The woman was hospitalised after the incident and diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder, later leaving her job at the broadcaster.
While she had reportedly requested for Masahiro to refrain from contacting her during her hospitalisation, he "continued to send her unilateral short messages".
In a recent statement through her lawyer, the woman expressed relief at the probe's conclusion.
"The damage I have suffered will never go away and what I have lost will never be recovered," she said.
"I sincerely hope that such things will never happen again, not only in the media entertainment industry, but also in society as a whole."
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