SAITAMA (TR) – A court here earlier this week handed down a life-in-prison term to a man who murdered three members of a family at their residence in Hanno City four years ago, reports TV Asahi (Mar. 16).
On Monday, the Saitama District Court sentenced the Jun Saito, 43, to the life term for murdering William Bishop, an American, his wife Izumi Morita and their daughter Sophiana Megumi Morita and their home on December 25, 2022.
Presiding judge Hideki Inoshita said, “A black and silver axe and a crowbar were found at the defendant’s home. Bloodstains were found on the silver axe, and DNA profiles perfectly matching those of the victims were detected.”
Prosecutors had sought the death penalty for Saito, who also lives in Hanno. However, the lay judge jury handed down the life term on grounds that Saito was in a diminished mental state at the time of the crime.
“He recognized that he was being harmed by a third party. His mental state was dominated by a strong intent to kill the victims,” judge Inoshita said.
Struck him with one of the axes
Saito is a neighbor of the family. He had a history of trouble with 69-year-old Bishop. About a year before the incident, he was arrested three times on suspicion of property damage for damaging Bishop’s car, but was not indicted each time.
According to the prosecution, Saito visited the family’s home with a cart loaded with a plastic container of kerosene and two axes, one silver and one black, on the day of the incident.
The first person to encounter Saito was Bishop’s wife, 68-year-old Izumi. Hearing his wife’s screams, Bishop came out into the garden, whereupon the defendant, Saito, repeatedly struck him with one of the axes.
The defendant then chased after and killed their daughter, 32-year-old Sophianna, who tried to escape at the front door. He finally killed Izumi with the other axe.
“Murderer, murderer, it’s over, murderer!”
During the trial, security camera footage was shown.
In one clip, Bishop is motionless as he is being repeatedly struck with the axe.
“Someone call the police. Someone help me!” Izumi screams.
“Stop!” yells Sophianna.
The sound of the axe making contact is clear, whereupon Sophianna’s screams cease. The footage then shows the assailant switching to another axe and chasing Izumi.
Residents then begin rushing to the scene.
“Murderer, murderer, it’s over, murderer!” one yells
Afterward, Saito poured the kerosene on the first and second floors of the home and set it on fire.
The DNA profiles of blood samples taken inside the house matched those of the three victims and Saito.
“My family was taken from me, my house was set on fire, and I lost all my memories and precious things. Christmas brings me immense pain,” Bishop’s second daughter said during the trial.
“Mental incapacity”
The main point of contention during the trial was whether Saito, suffering from schizophrenia, was criminally responsible.
The defense argued that “Saito is not the perpetrator, and even if he were, he cannot be prosecuted due to mental incapacity.”
In seeking the death penalty, the prosecution argued that Saito understood the illegality of his crime, citing his attempts to evade arrest after the crime.
A neighbor said, “His expression was completely normal; he wasn’t out of breath, and there was absolutely no sign of excitement or anything like that.”
“Premeditated”
After graduating from high school, Saito attended an art university in Osaka Prefecture and worked in film production. He is currently unemployed. Up until the incident, he was living on 110,000 yen a month provided by his mother.
“It was premeditated, and he was aware of its illegality,” judge Inoshita said. “He should have been able to stop himself, even if he had some difficulty. His sentence was reduced due to diminished mental capacity, but his criminal responsibility is heavy, and life imprisonment is appropriate.”
Judge Inoshita also mentioned the contents of Saito’s notebook, which was seized from him. It contained critical remarks about the West.
“The defendant believed that the minor damage to his home and physical abnormalities were attacks from the outside, including the United States,” said judge Inoshita. “The fact that he wrote ‘Bishop’ in the upper right corner of his notebook suggests that he believed he was part of the United States. It cannot be denied that his anger intensified due to delusions.”
