Anri Sakaguchi Arrested for Shoplifting as She Faces Isolation After Being Cut Off by Stepfather Jet Ozaki
Already left a gay bar as well
Arrested on suspicion of shoplifting a sandwich worth about 300 yen, former entertainer Anri Sakaguchi (35) appears to be inconsistent.
After her release, Sakaguchi appeared on the YouTube channel “JUNYA Channel” on March 29. She explained that the minor shoplifting was not due to financial hardship:
“It was more like a momentary impulse. In a life where there was nothing going on, I think there was some sense of thrill, like thinking it would be fine.”
Up until the incident, she had been working as a “mama” at a gay bar in Shinjuku Ni-chome, Tokyo, but left after causing trouble. With her image already established as a “troublemaker,” Sakaguchi also said:
“If this kind of thing becomes such a serious crime, I will never do anything bad again. I just want to live normally.”
Regarding her future, she said:
“I want to work in nursing care. I want to study for a caregiving qualification. I had been in a hospital like that once, for about one or two months. I learned a lot from that experience. I want to prove wrong the people who have been criticizing me all this time.”
Her intention to pursue a career in nursing care has received some positive reactions online, but her seriousness is questionable. In an Instagram story, she also wrote:
“Father-in-law, professional golfer Jell Ozaki, I want to contact you right now. If possible, I want to live together. I hope this message reaches someone.” (as originally written)
Started living with a third party
Anri’s mother is the late actress Ryoko Sakaguchi, who passed away in 2013. In 2012, she remarried professional golfer Takeshi Ozaki (72), who is not related to Anri by blood. According to an entertainment industry insider familiar with the situation:
“After Ryoko Sakaguchi passed away, they continued to have some contact for a while, but they are now in an ‘estranged’ state. When she debuted as an adult video actress in 2016, he was reportedly shocked, to the point of worrying, ‘Was there nothing I could have done?’ It seems he ultimately decided not to get involved. Her Instagram posts likely won’t reach him.”
While attempting to become financially independent, her “if possible” appeal to her stepfather highlights inconsistencies in her behavior. A person who knows Sakaguchi commented:
“When she’s doing well, she can communicate with people and smile normally. But when she goes into a down phase, she disrupts those around her, and people who get close to her end up exhausted.”
Even during her divorce from her former husband, a live-streamer, in 2023, it is said the husband could no longer endure the situation and unilaterally filed the divorce papers. According to another entertainment industry source familiar with the matter:
“She was extremely controlling and wouldn’t even let her husband go outside. When he had to go out for work, she would repeatedly contact him, and eventually she would say things like, ‘If you don’t come home, I’ll jump now,’ causing a scene. She actually did jump once and was injured. Her husband, who initially tried to support her, eventually broke down.”
It is said that Sakaguchi is currently living with a third party. However, not only her stepfather Ozaki but also her biological brother are reportedly in an “estranged state” from her. One can only hope she will now stay focused and steadily pursue a career in nursing care.
PHOTO： Shu NISHIHARA