A Japanese court on Friday sentenced a 19-year-old man to life imprisonment over a fatal group assault and robbery of a university student in the city of Ebetsu, Hokkaido, in a case prosecutors said he played a leading role in carrying out.
The Sapporo District Court handed down the life sentence, as demanded by the prosecution, to Yuto Kawaguchi, a former part-time worker who was 18 at the time of the October 2024 attack. Another defendant, who was 17 at the time, was sentenced to 30 years in prison, also in accordance with the prosecution¡¯s recommendation.
Kawaguchi pleaded guilty to robbery resulting in death and other charges at the start of his lay judge trial last month.
Prosecutors said he led the assault on 20-year-old university student Tomoya Hase, during which demands for money and valuables were made, and argued that he should bear the greatest responsibility for the crime.
His lawyers said the attack occurred amid group dynamics that made it difficult for him to stop the violence.
Kawaguchi¡¯s name was publicly released when prosecutors indicted him. While those age 18 and 19 are legally defined as adults under the Civil Code, they still fall under the juvenile law as ¡°specified juveniles¡± who face harsher penalties than minors for serious offenses and whose names can be disclosed if they are indicted in a criminal case.
According to the indictment, Kawaguchi and five others assaulted Hase in a park in Ebetsu between Oct. 25 and 26 in 2024, during which they punched and kicked him before robbing him of his cash and credit cards. Hase died from traumatic shock.
Prosecutors have said the incident occurred after Ama Yagihara, 21, Hase¡¯s then-girlfriend, consulted Haoto Kawamura, 21, after Hase told her he wanted to end their relationship. Kawaguchi, who was present when Hase was called to meet the group, began assaulting him and then kicked him, demanding restitution after Hase¡¯s blood got on his clothes, according to prosecutors.
Six people in total were charged with robbery resulting in death and other offenses in connection with the case.
Kawamura was sentenced by the Sapporo District Court in June to 30 years in prison after prosecutors sought a life sentence. Both prosecutors and the defense have appealed.
Kaito Takizawa, 19, a former high school student who was 18 at the time of the incident, was sentenced to 20 years in prison. Another defendant, who was 16 at the time, received an indeterminate sentence of nine to 13 years. Both sentences are final.
A date has not yet been set for the first hearing of Yagihara¡¯s case.
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