Former pro baseball player Kazuhiro Kiyohara was released on ¥5 million bail on Thursday following his arrest last month and subsequent indictment for alleged drug possession and use.
Media failed to capture the face of the 48-year-old celebrity as he left the Metropolitan Police Department building in Tokyo by car, but he apologized and vowed to recover from his plight in a statement issued through his lawyer the same day.
"I apologize from the bottom of my heart. I'm determined to start afresh with a clean slate and straighten myself out without fail," the former Seibu Lions and Yomiuri Giants slugger said, adding that he planned to stay in hospital to treat his health problems.