Hikaru Kondo, the president and founder of Demon Slayer animation studio Ufotable, has issued a public apology after admitting to charges of tax evasion.
In July, the Tokyo Public Prosecutor's Office issued a formal indictment against Ufotable and Kondo. At that month, the animation company and Kondo issued a statement denying the allegations and said that they believed they paid the right amount of taxes.
In a report by NHK (via Anime News Network), Kondo issued an apology, explaining that he hid parts of Ufotable's income in order to protect the company from any potential downturn in income, and he said that he hopes his crime "would not bring trouble to Ufotable". The studio founder was personally charged with evading over 138 million yen (about $1.2 million US) - while the studio was said to owe over $4 million USD in unpaid taxes. According to the report, Kondo hid the money in a private safe in his home, and Ufotable stated that it has now filed a corrected tax statement and has paid the proper amount in taxes.
At this time, it's still unkown if Kondo or Ufotable will face further repurcussions. According to the original allegations, Kondo and Ufotable had misappropriated funds collected during a charity event intended to raise money to help the victims of the 2011 Tohoku tsunami and earthquake, but at this time, it's still unknown if Japanese authorities are still charging Kondo and the studio.
Related: Demon Slayer Season 2 Won't Tone Down Its Red Light District Setting, According to TV Exec
Ufotable is currently working on Demon Slayer Season 2 anime, which will adapt the Entertainment District arc from the original manga series by Koyoharu Gotouge. The new season is expected to release this fall.
Explore new topics and discover content that's right for you!
Anime