SAITAMA (TR) – A court here has handed a prison term to a 69-year-old for shooting and seriously injuring a taxi driver in Kawaguchi City last year, reports NHK (June 6).
On June 6, the Saitama District Court sentenced Koichi Segawa to 21 years in prison.
In May of last year, Segawa shot the 72-year-old male driver in the chest with a handgun while trying to steal cash. “Hand over the money,” he said before firing.
Segawa had been accused of attempted robbery and murder. The prosecution had sought a 23-year term.
At the opening of the trial, Segawa partially denied the charges. “I did not intend to say ‘Hand over the money,’ As well, it was not my intention to rob.”
Meanwhile, in their opening statement, the prosecution pointed out, “He had debts of over 6 million yen and was behind on his rent and mobile phone payments. He had proposed robbing an acquaintance with a handgun.”
Presiding judge Kenichi Emi pointed out that “the intention of robbery is clear from the victim’s testimony and the footage from the dashcam inside the taxi.”
The court then said, “The defendant pointed a gun at the victim’s chest and fired, a crime in which he did not hesitate to take another person’s life. It was fortunate that the victim was not killed. The defendant fled after the crime, which has caused great anxiety to society.”
