Sakai, whose disappearance sparked a media frenzy in Japan and other Asian countries, was well-known throughout the region, especially in China, Hong Kong and Taiwan, because of her songs and TV dramas during the 1990s.
Tokyo police said on Saturday night they could not immediately confirm the report.
Sakai’s husband, Yuichi Takaso, 41, was stopped in central Tokyo earlier in the week by police, who allegedly found drugs when they searched him, according to reports.
Questions concerning Sakai’s whereabouts have dominated headlines since Takaso’s arrest, with her mother-in-law asking police to search for her, and the president of her management agency holding a news conference and urging her not to go through the difficult time by herself.
Another thespian with drug issues, actor Tom Sizemore, has been arrested in Los Angeles for alleged domestic violence. Police spokesman Richard French says the 47-year-old, best known for his appearances in Black Hawk Down and Saving Private Ryan, was arrested on Wednesday night in downtown Los Angeles. French did not have details of the incident.
Jail records show Sizemore was released on Thursday morning. His bail had been set at US$20,000.
Representatives for two agencies listed as representing Sizemore said they no longer did so.
Sizemore was convicted in 2003 of domestic violence involving his ex-girlfriend, former “Hollywood Madam” Heidi Fleiss. He’s also had a string of drug-related arrests in recent years.
“Anyone, Anyone? Bueller? Bueller?”
American TV personality Ben Stein has been stripped of his Sunday New York Times business column because of his work as a pitchman for a credit monitoring company.
Stein famously played the part of a monotone economics teacher in Ferris Bueller’s Day Off.
New York Times spokeswoman Catherine Mathis released a statement on Friday that said the newspaper decided it would not be appropriate for Stein to pitch for FreeScore.com while writing his column.
An e-mail requesting comment from the former host of Comedy Central’s Win Ben Stein’s Money quiz show was not immediately returned.
Earlier this year, Stein withdrew as the University of Vermont’s commencement speaker over complaints about his critical views of evolution in favor of “intelligent design.”
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