Canadian Cosplayer Arrested In Japan Over Falsified Marriage

A cosplayer from Canada was arrested in Tokyo last month for allegedly falsifying a marriage for immigration purposes.

Shannon Danielle Jean Wong, 29, was taken into custody on July 11 by Tokyo Metropolitan Police, according to a report by Anime News Network. Her so-called husband, a 37-year-old construction worker named Michinari Sasaki, was also arrested, and both confessed to charges of falsifying a marriage.

The two had first met at a cosplay event in Shinjuku’s Kabukichō district. Wong was reportedly interested in all things cosplay and Lolita fashion, which is why she wanted to gain Japanese citizenshiop. She had first entered the country on a student visa from 2012 to 2016.

According to the report, it was Wong who approached Sasaki with the idea of the phony marriage. In June 2016, she “proposed” to him with no intention of living with him or consumating their relationship. Sasaki knew what he was signing up for, however, as he allegedly demanded 70,000 yen ($6,260) up front and then an additional 30,000 yen ($270) each month after that.

The would-be couple made their marriage official on June 17, 2016 in a ward office in Yokohama. However, the Tokyo Immigration Bureau reportedly discovered the plot back in February of this year. After a thorough investigation, they found that Wong and Sasaki had never lived together as a married couple. They finally built up enough evidence to arrest them both last month.

A video published by the Fuji News Network showed the two as they were brought in for questioning. Sasaki looked resigned to his fate, while Wong looked extremely upset, as if she had been crying. During her time in Japan, she had reportedly held a number of jobs, including working in various capacities in various restaurants, and also as a sex industry worker.

Cosplay season is in full effect now, as we are between some of the year’s biggest comic cons and other major events. Earlier this week, cosplayer Kino Kaoru’s design when viral when he attended AsiaPOP as Thanos, and his young daughter dressed as a child Gamora.

Whatever dark implications it had about their dynamic, the costumes were both Stunning. After they blew up on Reddit and other social media, Kaoru explained how they came together in a Facebook post.

“Thanos cosplay by me. Little Gamora cosplay by my Daughter Shay Denorte. Costumes made by me and my wife. Mostly EVA foam and leatherette freehand built from scratch. Thanos face 3D printed. File by do3d. Infinity Gauntlet is a Hasbro Marvel Legends replica,” Kaoru wrote alongside a video from the con.