A senior Japanese Football Association (JFA) official, Masanaga Kageyama, has been handed an 18-month suspended jail sentence in France for viewing child pornography during a flight, a French court official confirmed on Tuesday.
Kageyama, 58, who serves as the JFA’s technical director, was arrested during a stopover at Paris’ Charles de Gaulle Airport last week while en route to Chile, where he was reportedly heading for the Under-20 World Cup.
According to the Bobigny prosecutor’s office, the offence was discovered by flight attendants who observed Kageyama viewing illicit images on his laptop during an Air France flight. The crew alerted authorities upon landing.
The court sentenced Kageyama on Monday to an 18-month suspended prison term and a fine of €5,000 ($5,830). He was also barred from working with minors for 10 years and prohibited from entering France for the same period. Additionally, his name will be placed on France’s national sex offenders’ register.
Read Also: Sporting Excellence: Nigeria Rises To 3rd In World Athletics
French newspaper Le Parisien reported that Kageyama initially claimed to be an artist and argued that the images were AI-generated. During the court hearing, he admitted to viewing the content but said he did not realise it was illegal in France and expressed remorse for his actions.
He was detained over the weekend before being released following his sentencing.
Kageyama, a former J-League player and coach, oversees technical and youth development for the JFA, including coaching education and national team programmes.
