On the morning of 6 October 2026 police searching the Higashi Mochida home of barber Toru Kondo, 61, in Aira, Kagoshima Prefecture, for another matter found plants that looked like cannabis in pots on an outdoor terrace.[1][2] One plant was tested and confirmed as cannabis, and officers arrested Kondo and his wife Yuko, 56, a clothing-store worker, on the spot for suspected cultivation under the Cannabis Control Act.[1][2]

FNN and KYT say the couple had been growing several plants and that police also displayed liquid fertiliser, pots, a tent and other gear thought to have been used for cultivation.[2] Police would not say whether the couple admitted the allegations, citing the investigation.[1][2] They are examining where the plants came from, when growing began and for what purpose.[1][2]