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Charges Dropped Against 2 Accused of Selling Fake Michael Jackson Anime Rights
posted on by Rafael Antonio Pineda
As of Monday, the Tokyo District Public Prosecutor's Office has dropped the charges of fraud against an executive and his son who allegedly claimed to hold the anime production rights to the late pop singer Michael Jackson. The Public Prosecutor's Office decided to drop the charges after "consideration of various circumstances."
From 2010 to 2011, the pair allegedly claimed to the president of a Tokyo anime production company that they had the rights to adapt Michael Jackson into anime. According to the police investigation, the two then received a payment of 11 million yen (about US$100,000) for a license to those rights. The Tokyo police arrested the father and son in March.
Jackson was the first major American artist to use anime in a music video. His 1995 "Scream" collaboration with his sister Janet Jackson included some brief background sequences from Tatsunoko Production's Akai Kōdan Zillion anime series.
Source: Nikkei
