Untimely death of Japanese AV Star -- Nozomi Momoi

Jlist reports:

Tragedy has struck the Japanese AV world, with the murder of one of its brightest stars, Nozomi Momoi, age 24. Details are still sketchy, but her body, stabbed six times with a knife, was found 10 meters from the charred remains of a car in her native Nagano Prefecture. The car contained the body of a man, and police believe that her death might have been tied to a murder-suicide pact. It's a very sad end for one of Japan's cutest and brightest AV idols, and it has all of us at J-List feeling very sad as well.

-- Snowman

Here's a link to a few (screenshot) pictures of Nozomi:

www2.free-city.net/home/hakdak21/ss3/

More information on this shocking news:

-- Snowman



Porno Starlet Tied to Bizarre Murder-Suicide Pact
Mainichi Daily News - Ryann Connell

http://www.tokyodv.com/

It was a shocking enough killing to attract national attention. But the Oct. 12 murder-suicide in Shiojiri, Nagano Prefecture achieved notoriety when it was learned that one of the victims was Nozomi Momoi, one of Japan's up-and-coming porno starlets, according to Asahi Geino (10/31).

The charred remains of a car were found on the banks of the Narai River that runs through Shiojiri late on the night of Oct. 12.

Inside the skeletal frame of the vehicle was a set of human remains so badly burned it took hours of testing before investigators could determine they belonged to a man. Other than announcing the man was a company employee who lived in Nagano Prefecture, police have released no other facts related to his identity.

Nozomi's body was found some 10 meters away from the car.

"She had been stabbed and left lying face-down on the ground," an investigation source tells Asahi Geino. "There is a possibility the deaths may have arisen from a suicide pact."

Nozomi seemed to have something Japan's myriad other porno starlets lacked and, at just 24, she was on her way up in the world before her tragic end.

"She made her debut about two years ago," a porno industry source tells Asahi Geino. "She was known for her baby face that topped off a huge set of boobs. She'd made over 100 movies since her debut. Recently, she'd gotten together with a group of other porno actresses to form a band. They'd only just released their first CD. Nozomi was also keen on working. Where most other girls in this business are glad not to have work, she was well known for going around asking for her next job."

Police say Nozomi was stabbed at least six times before she died.

"Forensic specialists have been able to work out that Nozomi was sitting in the passenger seat of the car when she was stabbed in the right armpit. She got out of the car only for her killer to track her down and stab her several more times to the abdomen. He then covered the actress with gasoline and set her on fire," the investigation source says.

Police have, according to Asahi Geino, basically written off the deaths as a bizarre suicide pact. However, chances are that murder charges may be laid posthumously on the man, a typical move for Japan's shame-oriented legal system that aims at ensuring criminals do not perish in a blaze of glory.

Unfortunately for Nozomi, there were apparently some warning signs that pointed to her gruesome fate.

"She went to junior high school in Nagano and had lots of friends living in the prefecture. She visited Nagano whenever she was on holiday. Just before she made this trip, her manager had warned her to look out for trouble...yet that's exactly what she met up with," a friend of the slain porn starlet tells Asahi Geino. "She had some guy she really liked. She told me she was going to get married and quit working in porn so she could become a stage actress."

Major bummer.