Japan National Volleyball Player Arrested over Cannabis Possession

Tokyo, May 28 (Jiji Press)–Tokyo police arrested Shunichiro Sato, a member of Japan’s national volleyball team for men, on Thursday on suspicion of cannabis possession in violation of the narcotics control law, investigative sources said. The Metropolitan Police Department alleges that Sato, 26, possessed dried cannabis at a “pachinko” pinball parlor in the Japanese capital’s Itabashi Ward on Wednesday afternoon. The investigators have not disclosed whether he has admitted the allegation. The MPD found what appeared to be plant fragments from an item that the suspect had left behind at the pinball parlor, later identifying them as cannabis through forensic testing. The police will conduct a urine test to determine whether he used cannabis. The Japan Volleyball Association said on its website Thursday that Sato was removed from the national team’s roster for fiscal 2026 the same day. “We seriously take the fact that such a thing has occurred and deeply apologize for betraying the public’s trust,” it said. The national team is currently in Tokyo’s Kita Ward, adjacent to Itabashi, for a training camp. Sato played for Wolfdogs Nagoya, based in Aichi Prefecture, central Japan, in the 2025-2026 season of SV.League. He is a middle blocker and from Miyagi Prefecture, northeastern Japan, according to the team’s website. END [Copyright The Jiji Press, Ltd.]