Although no official statement has been made by the artist or her representatives, evidence points to links between high-profile Japanese pop star AI (Ai Carina Uemura) and at least one, if not both, of the suspects being questioned over the rape and murder of Nicola Furlong.
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Suspect: James Blackston signs a shoe for a girl at a dance school in Sendai during a King Tight Workshop he taught two days before he and a 19-year-old fellow American allegedly met Nicola Furlong, who died in the early hours of May 24.[/caption]
It is believed that 23-year-old American James Blackston, the only person named by Tokyo police in relation to the crime, was dancing on stage with AI just days before he was arrested.