Former TBS announcer Ako Kawada was unexpectedly found dead on Monday morning after she apparently committed suicide. She was only 29 years old.

Kawada was discovered at around 6:15am inside a car parked on a coastal road in the Minato ward of Tokyo. The passerby who found her immediately called police. The cause of death is believed to be carbon monoxide poisoning from charcoal burned on a small grill placed on the back seat. The windows had been sealed from the inside with cellophane tape, and a message addressed to her family was left on the car's dashboard.

The car was found in a warehouse district several hundred meters away from Kawada's house. Eyewitnesses said they saw the car there between 9 and 10pm on Sunday night.

Her management agency said that her physical appearance had gotten worse early this month, but when asked about it, Kawada had said that she was fine. However, she was still advised to see a doctor. More than once, Kawada mentioned on her blog that she was in suffering, but the cause of her distress was never revealed.

Kawada joined TBS in 2002 but left the company and became a free announcer in March 2007. Most recently, she was a host of TV Asahi's wide show "Saturday Scramble."