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TOKYO (Reuters) – A man was sentenced to death by the Tokyo district court on Tuesday for the murder of nine people in 2017, local media reported, ending a case that made headlines in Japan involving the culprit dubbed a “killer of Twitter “for contacting the victims through social media. platform.
Takahiro Shiraishi, 30, was convicted of murdering, dismembering and storing the bodies of the nine in his apartment in the city of Zama in Kanagawa, outside of Tokyo, according to the report.
In court, the prosecution argued that Shiraishi contacted the victims via Twitter after they expressed suicidal thoughts, the Jiji news agency reported. Using a handle that loosely translates to “executioner,” Shiraishi invited them to his apartment in Zama, promising to help them die, Jiji said, citing the accusation.
Shiraishi’s defense attorneys argued that Shiraishi killed the victims with his approval, Kyodo said.
Presiding Judge Naokuni Yano ruled that the victims did not consent to be killed and that Shiraishi was mentally fit to be held responsible for their murders.
Twitter Japan was not immediately available for comment.
According to the indictment, Shiraishi strangled and dismembered eight women and a man aged 15 to 26 from August to October 2017, Kyodo said. He is also alleged to have sexually assaulted all of his female victims, the report added.
Shiraishi said before the trial that even if he was sentenced to death, he would not appeal, according to Japanese media.
In Japan, the death penalty is carried out by hanging, and execution dates are not made public until the sentence is carried out.
(Reporting by Junko Fujita; Editing by Kenneth Maxwell)
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