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8 People Arrested on Suspicion of Selling Fake Demon Slayer Figures in Japan

posted on by Adriana Hazra
5 of accused allegedly sold 44 figures for 57,980 yen

The Mainichi Shimbun newspaper reported on Friday that Kyoto, Hyogo and Akita prefectural police forces have arrested eight residents from six prefectures on suspicion of selling bootleg Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba merchandise and infringing the Copyright Act.

Kyoto Prefectural Police arrested five suspects. According to the police, the suspects were accused of selling four to 12 model figures each via online auction between February and June with the knowledge that the merchandise was duplicated without permission from Aniplex Inc. Three of the accused told the police they obtained the merchandise from the Chinese e-commerce group Alibaba Group Holding Ltd. One of the accused denied the allegations, claiming they did not know that the figures were not licensed merchandise. The five arrested individuals allegedly sold 44 total figures for a combined 57,980 yen (about US$550).

The figures were replicas of figures that were only available through convenience store lotteries and as claw machine prizes.

Koyoharu Gotouge's Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba manga debuted in Shueisha's Weekly Shonen Jump magazine in February 2016, and ended on May 18. The book franchise also includes several novels. When the manga's 22nd compiled book volume ships on October 2, the manga will have 100 million copies in circulation (including digital copies).

Shueisha revealed last November that the Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba manga was the company's second highest-selling manga in 2019, second only to Eiichiro Oda's One Piece manga.

The manga inspired a television anime that premiered in April 2019, and aired its 26th and final episode in September 2019. The Demon Slayer – Kimetsu no Yaiba – The Movie: Mugen Train (Kimetsu no Yaiba: Mugen Ressha-Hen) anime film opens in Japan on October 16.

Source: The Mainichi


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