Japanese 'sugar baby' given reduced prison sentence

NAGOYA — A high court on Monday sentenced a 26-year-old Japanese woman to eight years and six months in prison for defrauding three men out of a total of 155 million yen on a dating app, a six-month reduction from the previous ruling.

The Nagoya High Court handed down the reduced sentence to Mai Watanabe, known by the moniker "Itadaki Joshi Riri-chan," literally "Sugar Baby Riri," as damages had been paid on her behalf to one of the victims. The court upheld a fine of 8 million yen.

The compensation of 18 million yen was paid after a lower court ruling in April by a former host club staff member who had received money from Watanabe. The staff member is also currently on trial after being arrested last year for receiving the money Watanabe defrauded from the victims.

"The damage you inflicted on the victims is not limited to money," Presiding Judge Mihoko Tanabe told Watanabe after handing down the ruling. "I would like you to think again about how to compensate the victims in the future."

According to the high court ruling, Watanabe cheated three men out of a total of 155 million yen between 2021 and 2023. Watanabe was also convicted of evading income tax and selling a manual she penned to a woman on how to scam men out of money.

The ruling came after Watanabe's defense counsel appealed the Nagoya District Court ruling, saying the sentence was too severe.

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