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TOKYO: A Japanese man dubbed the “Twitter killer” was sentenced to death by a Tokyo court on Tuesday (December 15) for murdering and dismembering nine people he met online.
Takahiro Shiraishi, 30, admitted to killing and massacring his young victims, all but one of whom were women, whom he met on the social media platform.
His lawyers had argued that he should receive a prison sentence because his victims, aged between 15 and 26, expressed suicidal thoughts on social media and therefore consented to death.
But on Tuesday “the death sentence was handed down” to Shiraishi, a judicial official told AFP.
“None of the nine victims consented to be killed, including silent consent,” the judge said, according to public broadcaster NHK.
“It is extremely serious that nine young people were killed. The dignity of the victims was trampled on,” added the judge.
NHK said 435 people showed up to see the verdict, even though the court only had 16 seats available to the public.
Shiraishi took to Twitter to contact users who posted about taking his own life, telling them that he could help them in their plans, or even die alongside them.
The father of a 25-year-old victim said in court last month that “he will never forgive Shiraishi even if he dies,” NHK reported at the time.
“Even now, when I see a woman my daughter’s age, I mistake her for my daughter. This pain will never go away. Give her back to me!” he said.
Japan is one of the few developed countries that maintains the death penalty, and public support remains high.
Typically, years pass between sentencing and execution, with the last execution in December 2019, when a Chinese man was hanged for the murder of a family of four.
