A Japanese man was yesterday sentenced to death for the stabbing murder of 19 disabled people at a care home, in one of the nation’s worst mass killings.
Satoshi Uematsu never disputed his involvement in the grisly rampage, but his lawyers entered a plea of not guilty, saying the 30-year-old was suffering a “mental disorder” linked to his use of marijuana.
The Yokohama District Court ruled that the former employee of the facility deserved no leniency over the 2016 attack, which shocked the nation.
Photo: Reuters / Kyodo
“The lives of 19 people were taken away. This is profoundly grave,” chief judge Kiyoshi Aonuma told the court.
Uematsu planned the murders and had “an extreme intention to kill,” he added.
Prosecutors had sought the death penalty — which in Japan is carried out by hanging — and said the defendant was capable of taking responsibility for the violence at the Tsukui Yamayuri-en center in Sagamihara, a city just outside Tokyo.
Uematsu was impassive as the verdict was announced, looking straight ahead at the judge as he was sentenced.
He wore a black suit with his hair in a long ponytail down to his waist, and was flanked by six uniformed court officers wearing masks.
Uematsu, who faced six charges, including murder, reportedly said before the trial that he would not appeal any verdict, though he argued he did not deserve the death penalty.
He has reportedly said he wanted to eradicate all disabled people in the horrifying attack that also left 26 people wounded.
He turned himself in to police after the assault, carrying bloodied knives.
It later emerged he had left his job at the home just months earlier and been forcibly hospitalized after telling colleagues he intended to kill people at the center.
However, he was discharged after just 12 days when a doctor decided he was not a threat.
He had also written a letter outlining plans to attack the home, claiming “disabled people only create unhappiness.”
Among the few victims to be identified publicly was a 19-year-old woman, Miho, whose mother said Uematsu “didn’t need a future.”
“I hate you so much. I want to rip you apart. Even the most extreme penalty is light for you. I will never forgive you,” the mother said before the verdict, public broadcaster NHK said. “Please bring back my most precious daughter... You’re still alive. It’s not fair. It’s wrong.”
“I demand capital punishment,” she added.
Takashi Ono, whose son was severely injured in the attack, told reporters he was “relieved.”
“The judge gave the sentence the victims’ families hoped for,” he said.
However, some questioned the need for the death sentence, a policy that faces little major opposition in Japan.
“It shouldn’t have been the death sentence. We should have allowed him to learn better,” said Rie Sumida, a disabled 45-year-old woman waiting for the verdict.
“If you kill the person because of what he did, it means you do the same thing as Uematsu,” she said.
Japan has deployed long-range missiles in a southwestern region near China, the Japanese defense minister said yesterday, at a time when ties with Beijing are at their lowest in recent years. The missiles were installed in Kumamoto in the southern region of Kyushu, as Japan is attempting to shore up its military capacity as China steps up naval activity in the East China Sea. “Standoff defense capabilities enable us to counter the threat of enemy forces attempting to invade our country ... while ensuring the safety of our personnel,” Japanese Minister of Defense Shinjiro Koizumi said. “This is an extremely important initiative for
MORE POPULAR: Taiwan Pass sales increased by 59 percent during the first quarter compared with the same period last year, the Tourism Administration said The Tourism Administration yesterday said that it has streamlined the Taiwan Pass, with two versions available for purchase beginning today. The tourism agency has made the pass available to international tourists since 2024, allowing them to access the high-speed rail, Taiwan Railway Corp services, four MRT systems and four Taiwan Tourist Shuttles. Previously, five types of Taiwan Pass were available, but some tourists have said that the offerings were too complicated. The agency said only two types of Taiwan Pass would be available, starting from a three-day pass with the high-speed rail and a three-day pass with Taiwan Railway Corp. The former costs NT$2,800
POLLS CONCERNS: There are concerns within the KMT that a Cheng Li-wun-Xi Jinping meeting could trigger a voter backlash in elections in November Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Chairwoman Cheng Li-wun (鄭麗文) accepted an invitation from Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) to visit next month, her party and Chinese state media reported yesterday. Cheng, who took up her role in November last year, “gladly accepted” the invitation to lead a delegation to China, the KMT said in a statement, confirming a Xinhua news agency report. Cheng “looks forward to joint efforts by both parties to advance the peaceful development of cross-strait relations, promote cross-strait exchanges and cooperation, and work for peace in the Taiwan Strait and greater well-being for people on both sides,” the statement said. Chinese
SIGNIFICANT TO THE WORLD: The delegation’s visit aims to send a clear message that bipartisan support for Taiwan is consistent, US Senator Jeanne Shaheen said The US Senate’s bipartisan support for Taiwan remains strong and Taiwan-US ties would continue for decades to come, a US Senate delegation said in Taipei yesterday, while calling on the legislature to swiftly pass a special defense budget bill. A US delegation led by Democratic US Senator Jeanne Shaheen and Republican US Senator John Curtis — both members of the US Senate Committee on Foreign Relations — arrived in Taiwan yesterday for a two-day visit. The other senators of the delegation included Senate Taiwan Caucus cochair Thom Tillis and Senate Committee on Armed Services senior member Jacky Rosen. Shaheen told a news
RSS