Kiuchi Yoshio
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Chiba man sentenced to life for killing 4 family members
2009/12/17
The Chiba District Court sentenced a 78-year-old man to a life prison sentence Wednesday for killing four members of his family, including his 4-year-old granddaughter, in Chiba Prefecture in June last year. Yoshio Kiuchi killed the four after he felt disregarded through the attitude of his wife, who was among those murdered, Presiding Judge Wataru Nemoto said.
The court acknowledged the defendant as fully mentally competent, dismissing the defense’s argument that he was not competent. But the court said it found a life sentence appropriate as the defendant suffered from an adjustment disorder. Kiuchi was convicted of fatally battering his 75-year-old wife, 49-year-old son, the son’s 44-year-old wife, and the younger couple’s 4-year-old daughter with a hammer on June 24 last year at their home in the city of Kashiwa.