Following his previous arrest, it was reported that Shuto Inomata will not be indicted for causing bodily injury to a female acquaintance.
The news was announced by STARTO Entertainment on 21 October via a statement that stated that the Tokyo District Public Prosecutors Office decided not to indict the former timelesz member following previous investigations.
“Although the company has already terminated its exclusive contract with Mr Inomata, we once again sincerely apologise for the considerable inconvenience and concern caused to the person who was harmed, as well as to our fans, sponsors and all other parties concerned, in connection with the incident that occurred during his time with the company,” it added.
Shuto was arrested on 19 September on suspicion of punching a female acquaintance in the face and injuring her inside a car parked at a convenience store car park in Tokyo, the day prior.
It is believed that an out-of-court settlement was subsequently reached with the victim, and Shuto was released on 25 September without being formally charged.
However, the damage to his public image from the alleged violent incident has been severe. All commercials featuring him were taken offline, including those featuring the group as a whole. His contract with STARTO was also terminated on 30 September, with Japanese boy band timelesz now working as a seven-member group.
(Photo Source: timelesz IG, Japan News)