IWATE (TR) – A court here has handed a 37-year-old man a prison term over the murder of his wife and dumping of her corpse, reports Iwate Menkoi Television (June 1).
At the Morioka District Court on June 1, presiding judge Ryo Kato described the crimes of Yusuke Chiba as “selfish” in handing him a 14-year prison term over the murder of his wife, 36-year-old Megumi.
The prosecution had sought an 18-year term.
“Since his wife made thoughtless comments about his illness and debt, he cannot be blamed completely,” Kato added.
“We got into a fight”
According to the ruling, Chiba used an electrical cord to strangle his wife at their residence in Ichinoseki City early on May 31, 2019.
Upon his arrest on suspicion of murder on October 30, 2020, Chiba admitted to the allegations. “Our relationship was in trouble, and we got into a fight on the day [of the murder],” he said.
Megumi lived with the suspect and their son at the residence in Ichinoseki.
When Megumi was reported missing, police were led to believe that she left the family’s residence on foot at around 6:00 a.m. on May 31, 2019 after getting into a dispute with the suspect.
The following April, police working off a tip found a skull and other remains in the Maesawaku Seibo area of Mt. Otowa in Oshu.
“That’s a shame”
Two months later, police said that the results of a DNA analysis confirmed that the body was that of Megumi.
Prosecutors said that Chiba used a car to transport the body of Megumi from their residence to the mountain — a distance of around 20 kilometers — early on July 2, 2019.
After the ruling was finalized, judge Kato told reporters, “Had he been able to talk to someone before the killing, it could probably have been prevented. That’s a shame.”
