US player in Japan accused of smuggling drugs

Published November 20, 2014

Former Indiana player Lynn Washington was arrested for allegedly trying to smuggle marijuana into Japan from the United States.

The 33-year-old forward with the Osaka Evessa was arrested for allegedly violating Japan's Cannabis Control Law, prompting the bj-league to issue a statement Wednesday saying all its players must comply with drug tests by noon Friday.

"We will release everything in full," league commissioner Toshimitsu Kawachi said in a statement on the league's official Website. "We will work hard to restore everyone's trust."

Washington allegedly conspired with his wife to smuggle more than 3 pounds of marijuana with a street value of about $110,000 through the international mail in November, the Yomiuri Shimbun reported.

Washington, a native of San Jose, Calif., is a two-time bj-league MVP and also earned the All-Star Game MVP in each of the past two seasons.

Under Japan's Cannabis Control Law, possession of marijuana is punishable by up to five years in prison with forced labor. Foreigners convicted of drug crimes can also be deported from Japan and handed a lifetime re-entry ban.

In 2008, two Russian sumo wrestlers tested positive for marijuana and were expelled from the sport by the Japan Sumo Association.

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