KUALA LUMPUR: Japanese actress Sei Ashina who starred in the popular superhero TV series Kamen Rider Hibiki, was found dead at her Tokyo apartment on Monday. She was 36.
Japanese media reported that Ashina had allegedly committed suicide following revelations by investigative sources.
But the matter has yet to be verified since there was no suicide note found in her home at the time.
Ashina's body was apparently discovered by her brother who went to her home after she had stopped answering her telephone calls since last Sunday.
In Kamen Rider Hibiki, she played You Hime for a year from 2005.
Ashina was born in Fukushima and began her career as a fashion model before starring in numerous movies and TV series, including the period drama Yae no Sakura (Yae's Sakura) and the police drama Aibo (Partner).
She apparently beat 800 other actresses to play the lead role in the historical drama, Silk, in 2007. The film, an adaptation of an Italian novel of the same name, followed the story of a French silkworm smuggler and his wife, played by Michael Pitt and Keira Knightley, as they journeyed to Japan in search of silkworms in the 19th century.
Ashina was also a voice talent in the Japanese language version of the 2011 American TV series, Revenge, as the main character Emily Thorne.
She recently appeared in the TV series Theseus no Fune (Ship Of Theseus) and the movie AI Hokai (AI Amok) which was released in January.