The actor was arrested after the death of his parents

Ichikawa Ennosuke and his parents were discovered in their Tokyo home in May.

One of Japan’s most popular kabuki actors has been arrested in connection with the death of his parents. Ichikawa Ennosuke III was taken into custody on Tuesday, July 18 for allegedly helping his father, kabuki actor Ichikawa Danshiro, commit suicide. The popular actor, whose real name is Takahiko Kinoshi, was previously arrested in May and charged in connection with his mother’s death.

The arrest comes after Ennosuke and his parents were discovered at their home in Meguro Ward on Thursday May 18 in what is now believed to have been a suicide pact. The Asahi Shimbun reported at the time that the actor was “found in a dazed state in his semi-basement bedroom with a suicide note nearby. His parents were found unconscious in the living room on the second floor of the home. His father was pronounced dead at the hospital, while his mother, Nobuko, was pronounced dead at the scene. There were multiple suicide notes at the scene, according to Mainichi.

Ennosuke reportedly told police, “My family had a discussion and tried to kill themselves. My parents took sleeping pills.” According to the police, the actor gave his parents sleeping pills between the afternoon of May 17 and the next morning, resulting in their death on May 18. Japan today reported. Traces of two types of sleeping pills, which Ennosuke had previously been prescribed, were found in his system and in his parents’ bodies. Ennosuke was arrested on June 27 on allegations that he helped his mother take sleeping pills which led to her death.

Ennosuke reportedly told police that he and his parents decided “to go to the afterlife” after telling his parents about a magazine detailing his alleged involvement in bullying and sexual harassment of actors and staff at his theater collective. The article was published the same day as the suicide attempt.

Ennosuke, who comes from a famous family, made his kabuki debut in 1980 and has since become a driving force in both traditional and modern theater. He is well known for his Super Kabuki productions, including those of 2015 A play, based on the titular manga series by Eiichiro Oda. His other credits include Japanese broadcaster TBS’ Hanzawa Naoki. In 2012, at the age of 24, he became the fourth member of his family to take the name Ennosuke.

If you or someone you know is in crisis, please call or text 988 to reach lifeline suicide and crisis. The old Lifeline phone number (1-800-273-8255) will still be available.