First a sumo wrestler, then an actor, now students at elite universities and a tennis player -- the list of people caught using marijuana has sparked fears of reefer madness in Japan.

More than 2,000 people were arrested on dope charges between January and October this year, a 19 per cent increase on the same period last year, according to the National Police Agency.

"[The] increase in marijuana abusers, as well as tightening regulations, are both factors that pushed up the number of arrests," Shingo Katsuno, vice-president and an expert on Japan's drug issues at Hyogo University of Teacher Education, said in an interview.

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