A former J-pop idol says he was repeatedly sexually abused by Johnny Kitagawa, the founder of major Japanese talent agency Johnny & Associates. Kitagawa is known for creating some of Japan's most iconic boy bands such as SMAP and Arashi. He died in 2019.

Musician Kauan Okamoto told reporters on Wednesday that he suffered the abuse by Kitagawa, who was then the agency's president, about 15 to 20 times from the age of 15. Okamoto was in a boy band of the agency.

He said he believes everyone at the agency thought they had to gain the president's favor.

Okamoto said he feels gratitude toward Kitagawa, but thinks it was wrong of the president to do such things to him when he was 15.

Johnny & Associates issued a comment on the issue. The agency says it has put importance on creating an organization and system with high transparency to gain public trust, with renewed management following the death of the former president.

The agency added it will continue its unified effort to ensure compliance without exception and enhance its governance with cooperation from neutral experts.