Brazilian acquitted of murder
but found guilty of causing injury
Friday, June 22, 2007

NAGOYA — The Nagoya District Court acquitted a man Friday who had been accused of killing another man in Nagoya in 2000. But the court found Brazilian Artemio Ferreira dos Santos, 38, guilty of another charge, of injuring two other Brazilian men, and gave him a suspended prison sentence of 18 months.

Dos Santos was charged with stabbing automobile mechanic Higa Sidney Junior, 26, a Brazilian of Japanese descent, to death on a street in Nagoya on Feb. 6, 2000. He was also indicted for allegedly injuring the two others by slashing them on the arms and abdomen. Presiding Judge Osamu Ito said the court "cannot determine dos Santos as the culprit in the murder case," saying accounts of witnesses were contradictory and lacked credibility. (Kyodo News)