Furusawa Tomoyuki
Man to hang for three murders
Friday, November 16, 2007
TOKYO — The Supreme Court on Thursday dismissed an appeal by a 42-year-old man who has been sentenced to death for murdering the parents of his estranged wife and his 12-year-old stepson in Yokohama in 2002, finalizing his penalty.
According to rulings given by the Yokohama District Court and the Tokyo High Court, Tomoyuki Furusawa stabbed to death his wife's parents — Masayoshi Ujigawa, 71, and Fumiko, 63 — and his stepson Yuki in the predawn hours of July 31, 2002, at their house in Yokohama after breaking in. He also forced Masako into a car, drove to Toyama Prefecture and beat her in the face, according to the rulings. The defense counsel had claimed that the death sentence is too severe on the grounds that he did not plan to kill the victims. (Kyodo News)
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