Actress Arrested For Pouring Liquid Over Ancient Buddhist Treasure ‘To Pray For World Peace’

An actress has been arrested in Japan after allegedly pouring a glycerin-containing liquid onto a national treasure at a Buddhist temple as she prayed for her family’s health and world peace.

Taiwanese actress Deborah Tsai Yi-chen, 39, known professionally as Wu Xiong, is accused of pouring the liquid onto the Buddha Footprint Stone inside the Great Lecture Hall at Yakushiji Temple in Nara City, western Japan, on 6th April.

The stone, which bears markings representing the footprint of Shakyamuni Buddha, dates back to 753 and is designated as a national treasure, while Yakushiji is part of the UNESCO-listed Historic Monuments of Ancient Nara.

Temple staff discovered traces of liquid on the stone and alerted police, who examined surveillance footage and identified Tsai as a suspect.

She had already left Japan after the alleged incident, but was arrested at Kansai International Airport in Osaka Prefecture on 22nd August when she re-entered the country.

Police said glycerin, a substance commonly used in cosmetics and skincare products, was detected in the liquid.

Tsai reportedly admitted pouring the substance onto the stone, telling investigators: “Since I pour oil on things that move me when praying, I think I poured oil on the Buddha’s footprint stone.”

She reportedly told police that she had carried out similar oil-pouring rituals at other locations in the past, saying: “I’ve poured oil at other places before for the purpose of praying.”

She also reportedly said she had poured the liquid on the national treasure to pray for her family’s health and world peace.

Japanese authorities were reportedly looking into whether she may have carried out similar acts at other locations in Japan.

Tsai, who made her entertainment debut in 2005, is best known for playing Wuxiong in the Taiwanese idol drama KO One, as well as appearing in Summer x Summer.

Her manager issued a statement on 24th August after reports linked Tsai to the arrested woman, saying the incident was being investigated by Japanese authorities.

The statement said: "At this stage, we are still unable to make direct contact with her."

It added that her family and a local Japanese lawyer were helping to establish what had happened, but that the information available remained limited.

The manager said: "As there is limited information available at the moment, we are unable to provide a detailed explanation or response regarding the incident or media reports."

The statement also asked the public to respect the investigation and avoid further misunderstandings caused by unverified information.

It said: "We sincerely ask all parties to give the investigation the necessary time and space."

The manager apologised for “the public concern and inconvenience caused by this incident”, adding that further information would be released once the situation had been clarified and doing so would not interfere with the proceedings.

(Marija Stojkoska/Newsflash)