HOKKAIDO (TR) – The Sapporo District Court last week sentenced a teenager to life in prison for orchestrating the fatal group beating and robbery of a university student, rejecting the defense’s plea for a lighter sentence over an attack the judge called “nothing but absurd,” reports Fuji News Network (Aug. 7).
Yuto Kawaguchi, who was 18 at the time of the crime, was identified as the ringleader of a six-person mob that tortured 20-year-old university student Tomoya Hase in an Ebetsu City park in October 2024.
The fatal incident was sparked by a dispute over a breakup between Hase and his then-girlfriend, 21-year-old Ama Yagihara. Kawaguchi, who had only met Yagihara that day, testified that he intervened to “resolve the trouble,” claiming he acted out of a “distorted sense of justice.”
The group subjected Hase to a relentless two-hour assault before robbing him of his cash and bank cards. Prosecutors described the victim’s prolonged ordeal as “hellish suffering.”
“Switch flipped”
During the trial, a bizarre and chilling courtroom exchange highlighted Kawaguchi’s petty motives. The defendant revealed he became enraged simply because the victim initially apologized while standing up.
“He was taller than me, and I didn’t like being apologized to from above,” Kawaguchi testified, stating a senior associate had taught him that a dogeza (kneeling prostration) is the standard way to apologize for causing trouble.
Kawaguchi further testified that he briefly considered stopping the assault once a bleeding Hase finally knelt on the ground and begged for forgiveness. However, his “switch flipped again” when the victim’s blood got on him.
“Nothing but absurd”
While the defense argued for a 25-year sentence citing the defendant’s potential for rehabilitation, presiding judge Takasugi sided with prosecutors, handing down the demanded life sentence on August 7.
In delivering the verdict, the judge emphasized the profound grief of the bereaved family, noting that the victim was a long-awaited firstborn son raised with deep affection.
“There are no extenuating circumstances for inflicting violence on a victim you did not even know. It is nothing but absurd,” Judge Takasugi told the court.
Kawaguchi showed no change in expression as the sentence was read. When the judge admonished him to “continue thinking about what is wrong with you for the rest of your life,” the defendant gave a small nod.
A 17-year-old boy who also participated in the robbery and fatal assault was handed a 30-year prison term, in line with prosecutors’ demands.
The date for the first hearing in Yagihara’s case has not been set.
