On October 21, the Kyoto District Court sentenced Ryoyo Takahashi, the founder of the video-sharing site FC2, to three years in prison, a ¥2.5 million fine, with a five-year suspended sentence. The charges were related to making obscene videos available for public viewing. The defense did not dispute the facts, focusing instead on the sentencing. They argued that Takahashi was living in the United States at the time of the offense and was not fully aware of the illegality. They also noted he had since distanced himself from FC2’s management, reducing the risk of reoffending, and sought a suspended sentence.
Prosecutors countered that distributing obscene materials online is illegal under U.S. law as well, and Takahashi was well aware of this. According to the indictment, Takahashi conspired with company executives to host obscene videos in June 2013, despite being overseas at the time.
Kyoto police noted that FC2 had approximately 14 million users by 2014, with about 95% viewing content in Japanese. In 2015, authorities implemented measures to arrest Takahashi upon entry to Japan. He was arrested last November upon returning from South Korea at Kansai International Airport.
by MagazineKey4532