<figure id="attachment_384160" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-384160" style="width: 368px" class="wp-caption alignnone"><a href="#" data-ident_hash="1f7c6e86"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/fridaydigital/image/private/t_article_image/wpmedia/2024/07/919206c9d54b5479bead441443c2d2f4-1.jpg" alt=""></a><figcaption id="caption-attachment-384160" class="wp-caption-text">Downtown&#8217;s Hitoshi Matsumoto reportedly &#8220;followed&#8221; Child A</figcaption></figure>
 The sexual assault scandal involving Downtown&#8217;s Hitoshi Matsumoto has entered a new phase.
 A legal battle between Matsumoto and Bunshun Weekly is underway over a series of issues, and it has come to light that Matsumoto&#8217;s side has attempted to contact Ms. Ako, who claims that Matsumoto forced her to engage in sexual acts with him.
 Ms. Ako is one of the &#8220;most important witnesses&#8221; for Bunshun, and whether or not she testifies in court is said to have a significant impact on the verdict.
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 The Bunshun side claims that Matsumoto&#8217;s attorney, Masahiro Tashiro, was the driving force behind the pressure to prevent Ms. Ako&#8217;s appearance in court. He reportedly used an investigative firm to follow Ms. Ako, and he also suggested to Mr. X, a close friend of Ms. Ako&#8217;s, that she withdraw from court appearances.
 When these suggestions were rejected, Mr. Tashiro reportedly threatened her by saying that reports of her and Mr. X&#8217;s affair would be published in a weekly magazine. This is the world of drama.
 On the other hand, Mr. Tashiro issued a statement on his official website, denying that he had planned to obstruct the court appearance, admitting that he had met with Mr. X and investigated Ms. Ako&#8217;s personal affairs, but maintaining that there was no problem with his involvement in the trial.
 In response to the Bunshun report, Matsumoto took to social networking sites and wrote, &#8220;I will fight this case because it has no basis in fact.
 I will fight it because it has no basis in fact.
 I&#8217;m going to fight it because it has no basis in fact. He filed the lawsuit because he was innocent, and he was prepared to &#8220;take the stand,&#8221; regardless of whether or not Ms. Ako stood to testify. We believe that the junior comedian is also clean and hope that he will return to the entertainment world as soon as possible.
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 The junior comedian, Kazutoyo Kobushi, said in an information program in the Kansai region.
 I think Mr. Matsumoto wants (Ms. Ako) to come out because he is in court. If that is the case, the Bunshun side will say, &#8216;I want to come out,&#8217; and Mr. Matsumoto will say, &#8216;Come out,&#8217; so there is a definite atmosphere that Ms. Ako will come out.
 He then added
 I&#8217;ve been saying this for a while now, but I hope that the trial will go on and on, and that a decision will be made soon as to who was at fault or not.
 He is probably right.
<div data-friday-nextpage-lead=" He also had a courtroom confrontation with a &quot;senior&quot; lawyer representing Matsumoto&#39;s side. ......"></div>
This time, however, Matsumoto&#8217;s side was caught trying to use a &#8220;subterfuge. Even in the comedian world
 &#8220;Hey, Mr. Matsumoto, you&#8217;re at &#8230;&#8230;.&#8221;
 &#8220;Lawyer Tashiro is a detective agency.
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 The fact that Lawyer Tashiro asked a detective agency to investigate Ms. Ako&#8217;s background cannot be done without Mr. Matsumoto&#8217;s permission. Some people on the Internet are pointing out that Attorney Tashiro made an error in judgment, but the main source of the problem is Ms. Matsumoto. If Mr. Matsumoto had not given the OK, this would not have happened.
 In the Shukan Bunshun (weekly magazine) published on the 18th, Mr. X and his lawyer, Mr. Nobuo Nakamura, commented under their own names, denouncing the practices of Matsumoto&#8217;s side. Mr. Nakamura was Mr. Tashiro&#8217;s senior when he was a prosecutor, and is a partner in a law firm where Motonari Otsuru, former head of the Special Investigation Department of the Tokyo District Public Prosecutors Office, is also a member of the firm. Mr. Nakamura has been consulting with Ms. A for more than three years.
 He is outraged by Mr. Matsumoto&#8217;s horrific acts.
 He condemns the crime.
 It takes determination to expose one&#8217;s real name in Bunshun. Rumors are circulating that even Nakamura&#8217;s lawyer may be preparing to testify in court about the damage done to Ms. Ako.
 This will serve as reinforcement material to prove that Ms. Ako&#8217;s story has remained unchanged for more than three years. In other words, the possibility that the truthfulness of Bunshun&#8217;s publication of Ms. Ako&#8217;s allegations will be recognized will increase.
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 Matsumoto&#8217;s out-of-court &#8220;tricks&#8221; ended up amplifying the anger of Ms. Ako&#8217;s side. In addition, a new &#8220;reinforcement&#8221;, Nakamura&#8217;s lawyer, was also called in. &#8230;&#8230;
 We sent a letter of inquiry to the law firm to which Nakamura&#8217;s lawyer belongs, asking about his &#8220;preparations for testifying,&#8221; but received no response by the deadline.
 In defamation cases, there is always a settlement offer from the court. At first, there were many reports that Mr. Matsumoto&#8217;s side would not accept any settlement and that it would be black and white, but looking at the series of developments, it seems that there has been a change in their hard-line stance. Settlement is a so-called &#8220;gray judgment. The Bunshun side may accept the settlement depending on the conditions. &#8230;&#8230;
 Is there a way out of the muddled court case?

 Downtown's Hitoshi Matsumoto has filed a lawsuit against the Weekly Bunshun to restore his reputation. However, the tailing of the victim, Ako, came to light, and even the lawyer who had been consulting with her appeared under his own name. ......

The &#8220;report that Ms. A was followed by Mr. X&#8221; and the &#8220;possibility of Mr. X appearing as a witness&#8221; cast a shadow over Hitoshi Matsumoto, even though &#8220;there is no basis in fact and I will fight it.

The “report that Ms. A was followed by Mr. X” and the “possibility of Mr. X appearing as a witness” cast a shadow over Hitoshi Matsumoto, even though “there is no basis in fact and I will fight it.

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