Man arrested for attempted extortion from Ayumi Hamasaki

On Friday, Shibuya police arrested a man who had sent a threatening letter to the home of pop singer Ayumi Hamasaki (31). The suspect, 42-year-old Motoyoshi Fujii, is being charged with attempted extortion. Fujii has reportedly admitted to the crime.

In late December, Fujii sent the letter to Hamasaki’s home, though an Avex staff member checked it first before the singer could read it. At first glance, it appeared to be a fan letter, containing words of praise for Hamasaki and other artists. However, the letter also demanded that 500 million yen be deposited into a designated bank account, or else the home of Avex president Max Matsuura (45) would be burned down. Fujii wrote that this was under the orders of his gang’s boss.

The staff passed the letter on to Matsuura, who filed a claim with the police in January. Investigators easily traced the letter to Fujii, as it included his name and address and was postmarked in his city.

Police are currently working to determine whether Fujii was responsible for several other similar letters that had been sent to Hamasaki and Matsuura since last fall. They are also investigating how he obtained Hamasaki’s address.

Source:
Sports Hochi