TOKYO (TR) – A top hostess and influencer in the Roppongi nightlife district has been arrested for cocaine possession following a highly secretive, half-year investigation by the Tokyo Metropolitan Police, reports the site Gendai Media (Sep. 26).
Rino Tazawa, 27, who works under the popular alias “Yama Torino,” was taken into custody on September 15. Tazawa was a top earner at the famous Roppongi hostess club “JUNGLE” and widely known online for her outspoken social media presence and appearances on internet programs.
The undercover probe began in early spring after the police’s Drugs and Firearms Countermeasures Division—an elite unit renowned for busting high-profile celebrities for drug offenses—received multiple credible tips from nightlife informants. The sources specifically named Tazawa as a heavy, habitual cocaine user.
Dinner dates
Because of Tazawa’s high profile, investigators took extreme precautions to prevent information leaks. Bypassing the local Azabu Police Station, a special task force set up a covert headquarters in a vacant room at an undisclosed Tokyo precinct.
Tailing the top earner proved challenging due to the erratic hostess schedule, which involves pre-shift dinner dates (dohan) and after-hours drinking sessions with clients. To avoid arousing suspicion, police deployed female officers to covertly track her movements via taxis and club vans across the city.
“A man is almost always involved”
The investigation intensified in late April during Tazawa’s lavish birthday event at a famous Roppongi venue known locally as the “Hostess Club Building.”
Plainclothes detectives staked out the street, visually screening every guest who entered. Because infiltrating the club as customers posed too high a risk of exposure, police instead focused on identifying big-spending male patrons who might be supplying the narcotics.
“When a woman is doing drugs, a man is almost always involved,” a police source explained. “Investigating the ‘thick customers’ who drop massive amounts of money can lead to clues about where the stuff is coming from.”
Social media
To build their case, investigators tapped club informants and meticulously scrutinized Tazawa’s social media accounts, eventually obtaining private smartphone video recorded by close acquaintances.
While examining her facial expressions and erratic behavior in the footage, one investigator reportedly muttered, “She’s definitely doing it,” setting the stage for her eventual arrest.
