Nekokurage, one of The Apothecary Diaries manga artists, pleaded guilty to tax evasion charges on Friday during the first hearing at the Fukuoka District Court. The Fukuoka Regional Taxation Bureau announced on April 1 that Nekourage failed to declare around 260 million yen (~$1.7m) in income, with 47 million yen ($310k) subject to taxation between 2019 and 2021. Nekokurage, whose real name is Erika Ikeda, apologized when the information became public and admitted that she failed to pay her taxes out of ignorance and lack of education on the matter.
During the hearing, the prosecution stated that Nekokurage, who began working as a mangaka in 2010, was made aware of the duty to file tax returns, but chose to prioritize deadlines. It was also pointed out that Ikeda repeatedly failed to meet the deadline for filing tax returns and filed them for several years at once. Nekokurage’s editor’s statement was also read; the editor warned her about filing taxes because “if trouble happens the series could be canceled.” The Apothecary Diaries author, Natsu Hyuga, suggested that Nekokurage consult an accountant.
In a statement released in April, Nekokurage stated that she was now working with an accountant to pay everything off. According to a report by Mainichi, she has since paid the amount, including late fees.
Nekokurage has been working on The Apothecary Diaries since 2017 when the series got a manga adaptation in Square Enix’s Monthly Big Gangan. Itsuki Nanao is in charge of the story development for the adaptation. The series has another manga adaptation with art by Minoji Kurata in Shogakukan’s Monthly Sunday Gene-X. Kurata recently revealed that she had a baby and will be going on a brief hiatus.
Source: Mainichi
Featured image: The Apothecary Diaries, © Natsu Hyuga, Nekokurage / Square Enix
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