Japanese Princess Mako and her fiancé Kei Komuro made headlines in 2017 when it was revealed that she had to give up her royal title after marriage because he is a commoner.
Everyone loved how this princess was willing to give up everything for love!
Photo credit: Next Shark
But Komuro’s financial woes would hound the engagement. The couple was set to marry in November 2018, but Komuro postponed the wedding to pay off his ‘student’ loans.
Debt or Donation?
The 27-year-old Komuro now works as paralegal at a law firm in Tokyo. His financial troubles are largely due to a dispute with his mother’s ex-fiancé.
While Komuro was still in school, his mother’s then-fiancé lent her 4 million yen ($36,500). This was spread from 2010 to 2012.
But when the engagement between Komuro’s mother and her ex-fiancé was called off, the guy got angry and demanded that the woman pay him back. The Komuros defended themselves saying the money was a donation, not a loan, since the two were still in a relationship.
Photo credit: Deccan Chronicle
Since the ex-fiancé insisted that the family pay him back, Komuro finally decided to the ‘student loan’ first before he gets married with Princess Mako.
The Prince Wants Answers
After it was announced that the November wedding would be postponed, Princess Mako’s dad, Prince Fumihito announced that he wants answers from the pair.
“If the two still have feelings for marriage, there should be responses accordingly,” the prince said.
While he is not the Crown Prince, Prince Fumihito is second in line to the throne, after his elder brother Crown Prince Naruhito. Meanwhile, Princess Mako is his first child and eldest daughter.
The Imperial Household Agency later announced that the couple has decided to push back the wedding to 2020, with high hopes that Komuro would be able to pay off his debt by then.