Ryuchell Higa
Age 27 (born 29 Sep 1995)12 Jul 2023
Tokyo (Japan)
Possible suicide
Ryuchell was found dead in their agency's office.
Japanese TV personality Ryuchell has been found dead by their manager at the agency's office in Tokyo.
The 27-year-old's cause of death has not yet been confirmed, but police said they are investigating if they died by suicide.
Ryuchell married a fellow model in 2016 and the pair had a son.
In August 2022, the couple divorced after Ryuchell announced they no longer identified as male, attracting much criticism online.
Ryuchell became an influential LGBT figure in Japan and was well-known for their genderless style of dressing. As they became more famous, they were subject to numerous online social harassment campaigns which largely criticised their personal life and gender non-conformity.
Shortly after their death, terms like "Ryuchell" and "character assassination" started trending on Twitter in Japan.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ryuchell
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-66178363
https://metro.co.uk/2023/07/12/ryuchell-dead-japanese-tv-personality-found-dead-aged-27-19117149/