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Kill Me Baby/Sweet Blue Flowers Voice Actress Ai Takabe's Drug Charges Dropped
posted on by Egan Loo
The Tokyo District Public Prosecutors Office decided on Tuesday not to prosecute Kill Me Baby voice actress and idol Ai Takabe (real name, Ai Nakayama), who was arrested last year for allegedly violating Narcotics and Psychotropics Control Law with cocaine use. The office said that it made its decision in consideration of various circumstances, including the small amount of cocaine on her possession and the societal sanctions she already received.
Takabe was originally arrested for drug possession on October 15, and a search of her personal belongings and her household had allegedly yielded cocaine. After her October arrest, Takabe reportedly tested positive for cocaine use. On the day of the arrest, Japanese streaming services such as Amazon and Bandai Channel had removed Kill Me Baby and other anime in which Takabe voiced roles.
The Tokyo Metropolitan Police charged Takabe in November on charges of drug use in violation of the Narcotics and Psychotropics Control Law.
Additionally, Takabe's official profile and blog on the website of her agency at the time, Oscar Promotion, was deleted. Oscar Promotion issued a statement upon her arrest, stating, "We have heard of [Takabe's] arrest. Whatever the reason, we have cancelled our contract [with her]."
However, she has since appeared in Sen no Sōsakan Nishi Kaneko, a live-action detective special that aired in February.
Takabe made her voice acting debut in the Sweet Blue Flowers (Aoi Hana) anime series as Fumi Manjoume. She has also voiced characters in anime such as Hourou Musuko (Wandering Son), Sacred Seven, the Sacred Seven: Shirogane no Tsubasa film, and Kill Me Baby. She was a member of the Bishōjo Club 31 idol group, and has acted in live-action television series on Fuji TV and TV Asahi.
Source: Sankei Sports via Yaraon!
