The Ministry of Health, Labor, and Welfare’s Kanto Shinetsu Health and Welfare Bureau’s Narcotics Control Department, commonly known as Matri, is planning to conduct a full-scale investigation of actress Ryoko Yonekura (50) for violation of the Narcotics Control Law, according to a report by Shukan Bunshun. The Shukan Bunshun team received information in early June that Yonekura had surfaced in the Matrix investigation lineup, and since then, the team has been checking on Yonekura’s movements for about four months. The investigation took a major turn on August 20. Matri raided Yonekura’s apartment in Tokyo and conducted a raid. The apartment is also Yonekura’s “love nest” where she lives semi-cohabitantly with her boyfriend, an Argentine dancer named X. When Yonekura returned to Japan, Matri directly interviewed her and asked her about the incident.
Direct interview upon Yonekura’s return to Japan
Two days after the raid, Yonekura left for Europe, touring London and other cities for about two weeks. After obtaining information that the seized items at the raid “were highly likely to contain illegal ingredients,” the team directly interviewed Yonekura upon her return to Japan on September 6. Yonekura subsequently declined to appear at a photocall ceremony scheduled for September 17 to celebrate the reopening of the “BARNEYS NEW YORK” Ginza flagship store. Since then, Yonekura has cancelled a series of events, and there were concerns about her health. After the “Shukan Bunshun” interview, a letter of inquiry was sent to Yonekura’s agency asking about the fact of the raid and the illegality of the seized items, but no response was received by the deadline. What in the world is happening to a nationally known actress? The Shukan Bunshun (Weekly Literary Supplement), which is currently being distributed, reports on Yonekura’s “allegedly confiscated items” seized in the raid. It will also report in detail on the entire raid and Yonekura’s direct response to a direct interview just before she went into hiding.
Shukan Bunshun Editorial Department / Shukan Bunshun Electronic Original