The Tokyo District Court handed a guilty sentence on Thursday to Hidenobu Ōnishi, the man who was arrested for stalking and harassing 20-year-old actress, singer, and former AKB48 idol group member Karen Iwata.
Iwata debuted in the AKB48 idol group as a trainee in 2011, and graduated from the group in 2016.
According to the police, Ōnishi had been a “fan” of Iwata since 2012, the year after she debuted as part of the main AKB48 idol group.
After the incident, the suspect allegedly wrote threats to Iwata and her family, and repeatedly attended events where Iwata was present.