The 27-year-old man indicted for assaulting kabuki star Ichikawa Ebizo in Tokyo in late November pleaded guilty Friday as his trial opened at the Tokyo District Court.

Lion Ito has been in the spotlight since he was suspected of punching Ebizo, a kabuki actor whose father is the famed Ichikawa Danjuro, during an early morning brawl Nov. 25 at a bar on the 11th floor of a building in the Nishi-Azabu district in Minato Ward.

Ebizo, 33, sustained several injuries during the incident, including a broken left cheekbone, and has been suspended from performing indefinitely due to his behavior.