Fujishiro Yasutaka
Death penalty sought for man accused of killing 7 relatives
Friday 27th February, 2009
KOBE
Prosecutors sought the death penalty Thursday for a man accused of killing seven of his relatives and injuring another in a stabbing spree in Kakogawa, Hyogo Prefecture, in 2004. In closing arguments at the Kobe District Court, the prosecutors called the crime by Yasutaka Fujishiro, 52, an ‘‘unusually serious and heinous’’ one.
Fujishiro killed the seven relatives, including an 80-year-old aunt, on Aug 2, 2004, by hitting them with a hammer or stabbing them with a knife, according to the prosecutors. He was also accused of inflicting serious injuries on another relative. The focal point of his trial is whether he was mentally competent, with the prosecutors arguing psychiatric test results showed he was fully competent.
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