SAITAMA ¨C A district court on Monday sentenced a man to life in prison for murdering three members of a family, including a U.S. citizen, in the city of Hanno in Saitama Prefecture, in December 2022.
The crime was ¡°brutal, merciless and very vicious,¡± Presiding Judge Hideki Igeta said in a lay judge trial at the Saitama District Court, while acknowledging the defendant¡¯s limited criminal responsibility. Public prosecutors had sought the death penalty.
The defendant, Jun Saito, 43, harbored anger and the delusion that the victims were attacking him, the judge said.
¡°The manner of the crime was extremely vicious as Saito relentlessly assaulted the victims even after they stopped resisting,¡± the judge said.
It is very serious that Saito killed the three victims, who were without fault, and ¡°capital punishment could have been an option,¡± the judge said.
Meanwhile, Igeta said the defendant had schizophrenia at the time and ¡°it is suspected that he had difficulty in restraining himself from committing the crime.¡±
The judge said Saito had a limited mental capacity and found a life sentence to be appropriate.
He also rejected the defense¡¯s insanity plea, saying the defendant took planned and rational actions such as preparing an ax and wearing a face mask to avoid being seen by security cameras.
In response to the claim by public prosecutors that the influence of his mental disorder on the crime was limited, Igeta said it was ¡°unreasonable and arbitrary to assess Saito¡¯s mental status in a way that excludes his delusions and motives at the time of the crime.¡±
¡°The sentence is generous, and we feel strong anger,¡± a member of the bereaved family said in a statement after the sentencing. ¡°We hope that prosecutors will quickly appeal the ruling.¡±
According to the verdict and other sources, Saito killed U.S. national William Ross Bishop Jr., 69, and two members of his family by striking their heads and necks with an ax at the couple¡¯s house at around 7 a.m. on Dec. 25, 2022. Saito then poured kerosene into a room and set it on fire.
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