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Shogakukan, the publisher of hit manga like Frieren: Beyond Journey’s End and Detective Conan, confirmed on Feb 27, 2026, that it has suspended distribution of Jojin Kamen after acknowledging that its original author, Kazuaki Kurita, who wrote the series under the pen name Hajime Ichiro, was convicted in 2020 under Japan’s child pornography law.
Despite that conviction, Kurita continued publishing on the company’s Manga ONE platform for nearly six years. He also published the series Daten Sakusen (Operation Fallen Angel) under the pen name Shoichi Yamamoto.
This came to light after the latest court ruling against the author on Feb 20, 2026, where he was asked to pay damages worth 11 million to the victim.
In a formal statement, Shogakukan admitted failures in its editorial decision-making and verification process that allowed the appointment to proceed.
The editorial department issued an apology to the victim, readers, the series’ illustrator and other creators for betraying their trust.
The announcement triggered significant backlash across social media platforms, with readers and fellow creators serializing on Manga ONE publicly questioning how a previously convicted offender had been permitted to continue publishing on the platform for years.
Criticism also intensified over the reported involvement of an editor in settlement discussions between Kurita and the victim in 2021, including participation in a messaging app group chat during negotiations over compensation and conditions.
Table of Contents
The information for the following section are taken from various sources, including media reports, manga author Eno Sumi’s detailed timeline of events and others covering the latest ruling.
CONTENT WARNING: The following write-up contains sensitive information regarding child abuse and exploitation that some readers may find deeply distressing.
Timeline of Kurita’s Abuse and Arrest:
Kazuaki Kurita worked as a drawing instructor at the Hokkaido Arts High School Sapporo Satellite Campus, a correspondence institution operated by Kyokei Gakuen Educational Corporation in Niki Town, Hokkaido.
While he was working there, Kurita began serializing Daten Sakusen on Manga ONE.
Meanwhile, the victim enrolled at the high school in April 2016 at age 15. Kurita, who was 30 years older, taught her classes and initiated contact during school breaks under the pretext of discussing manga and “behind-the-scenes” industry stories.
During her first year, Kurita offered to drive her home after she stayed late working on an assignment but instead diverted to a secluded location, where he reportedly groped her. In subsequent months, he repeatedly contacted her outside school and began taking her to hotels.
Despite the victim’s objections Kurita continued to engage in sexual acts with her once or twice per month.
The author was described as showing a pattern of escalating coercion and degrading abuse. The acts included forced sexual conduct, humiliating treatment, applying feces on the face of the victim and in her mouth, compelling public nudity, and the photographing the victim with with words like “pet” and “slave” written on her body.
After the victim graduated in March 2019 and relocated outside Hokkaido, Kurita continued to demand obscene images until July 2019. The victim later developed severe post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and dissociative identity disorder (DID) due to the abuse.
In February 2020, Kurita was arrested for violating Japan’s Act on Punishment of Activities Relating to Child Prostitution and Child Pornography. He received a summary order and was fined 300,000 yen.
Kurita’s conviction was limited to the possession of photographs taken during the period of abuse. Due to evidentiary constraints common in delayed sexual assault cases, particularly the absence of preserved physical evidence, no broader criminal convictions for sexual assault or injury were secured at that time.
Cover-up by Shogakukan’s Editorial Department
In February 2020, following Kurita’s arrest, Manga ONE suspended Daten Sakusen. The suspension was short-lived. In March 2020, the series resumed serialization without any public explanation for either the initial halt or the reinstatement.
The manga continued to run on Manga ONE despite the arrest. According to later court filings and related reporting, the victim demanded that Kurita cancel the resumed serialization.
In May 2021, negotiations took place regarding this matter, in which an editor reportedly intervened. Kurita and the editor offered the victim 1.5 million yen in exchange for withdrawing her demand to halt the series.
The victim countered that she would consider withdrawing the request only if it was publicly disclosed that the reason for the hiatus of Daten Sakusen was Kurita’s arrest. Kurita refused to make the arrest public. At that stage, publication continued without disclosure of the underlying criminal case.
This clearly suggested that the editorial department at Shogakukan were aware of Kurita’s crimes but chose to turn a blind eye to it to continue serialization.
Shogakukan, in its Feb 27, 2026, statement, confirmed that an editor had joined a messaging app group chat during negotiations but declined to publicly name the editor. The company asserted that it “had no intention of being involved as an organization,” though it acknowledged that its recognition of the severity of the case and its grasp of the information had been insufficient.
However, manga author Eno Sumi, in her blog, noted that the editor in question was Narita.
A civil lawsuit was subsequently filed in July 2022 by the victim, following which Daten Sakusen ceased publication for good on Manga ONE. This happened in October 2022, but, the title later transitioned to self-publication.
Kurita’s Return to Serialization with Jojin Kamen
Despite the prior arrest, civil dispute, and 1.5 million yen settlement offer controversy, Kurita returned to serialization under the new pen name Hajime Ichiro, with Narita again serving as the editor in charge of the work.
During this same period, Manga ONE’s editor-in-chief position transitioned, with Hiroki Wada serving until October 2022 and Fumitoshi Mameno assuming the role that same month. Commercial manga projects typically require several months of planning prior to launch, meaning that Jojin Kamen, which began in December 2022, would have been approved during the overlap of that leadership transition.
The series continued publication for more than three years, from December 2022 until the subsequent Feb 27, 2026 suspension announcement.
Eri Tsuyoshi, illustrator of Jojin Kamen, clarified in her own statement that she had not been informed of the author’s past and learned about the incident through social media. She said she had met the author only once and that all communication had been conducted through the assigned editor.
The company has not publicly clarified who ultimately authorized Kurita’s reappointment under a different name or what internal vetting and risk assessments were conducted at the time.
Civil Lawsuit and Judgement:
During the civil litigation, Kurita argued that the acts occurred within what he characterized as a “serious dating relationship” carried out with the victim’s consent.
He contended that he did not infringe upon the plaintiff’s rights or legally protected interests, citing trips to aquariums, art museums and festivals in addition to hotel visits, and asserting that the plaintiff did not seek help from bystanders when they first entered a hotel.
The court rejected those claims and emphasized that Kurita was 30 years older than the victim and occupied a position of dominance as her teacher.
The decision concluded that her right to sexual self-determination had been violated, finding that he exploited her to intentionally create a relationship in which he held the upper hand.
On Feb. 20, 2026, the court ordered Kurita to pay a total of 11 million yen in damages, comprising 10 million yen for emotional distress and 1 million yen equivalent to attorney’s fees.
Because the case was a civil proceeding, no arrest resulted from the judgment. Civil litigation in Japan determines financial liability but does not impose criminal penalties.
Kurita’s legal representative signaled intent to appeal, stating that the court appeared to have formed an impression differing from the evidence submitted.
Looking ahead, Shogakukan has revealed that they will set up an investigative committee in order to get to the bottom of the issue.
“To ensure this never happens again, we will establish an investigative committee that includes lawyers to swiftly uncover the facts and underlying causes, including the circumstances leading to the start of the serialization and the editor’s level of involvement, such as in the settlement discussions. Following that, we will report the findings of the investigation, issue strict disciplinary actions, and formulate and implement measures to prevent a recurrence,” the publisher wrote in their statement.
