Takahiro Shiraishi

JAPAN: DEATH SENTENCE FINALIZED FOR 'TWITTER KILLER'

January 6, 2021:

The death sentence for a 30-year-old man dubbed Japan’s “Twitter killer” over the serial murders of nine people in Kanagawa Prefecture in 2017 was finalized on 5 January 2021, court officials said.
After being handed a death sentence on 15 December, Takahiro Shiraishi withdrew an appeal filed three days later by his lawyer. The deadline to file an appeal was set for 4 January.
During his trial, Shiraishi said that he did not want to be a nuisance to his relatives by extending his trial. He also had said that he would not file an appeal against a ruling and would accept his punishment.
According to the ruling, Shiraishi came into contact with the victims, aged 15 to 26, who had voiced their desire to end their lives on Twitter between August and October 2017, in hopes to satisfy his hunger for money and to fulfilll his sexual desires.
He invited the victims to his apartment in Zama, Kanagawa Prefecture, and strangled them using rope, according to the ruling from Tokyo District Court's Tachikawa branch.
Shiraishi also stole money from all victims and raped eight female victims. He dismembered the nine and dumped their bodies.