‘Twitter Killer’ Gets Death Sentence for Killing 9 People through Micro-Blogging Platform
In a high profiled case, Takahiro Shiraishi, 30, who is famously dubbed as the ‘Twitter Killer’ has been sentenced to death by a Tokyo court.
In a high profiled case, Takahiro Shiraishi, 30, who is famously dubbed as the ‘Twitter Killer’ has been sentenced to death by a Tokyo court.
The offender lured victims who had suicidal thoughts through the micro-blogging platform, promising to assist them in their plans, and in some cases, he promised to kill himself alongside.
He murdered nine people from August 2017 to October 2017 which includes 8 young women and 1 man.
He was arrested when the brother of one of the victims was searching for his sister and led an investigation. He with the help of another young woman created a fake account and planned a meet with Takahiro Shiraishi. They got the police involved in the case.
On reaching his apartment on the morning of 31 October 2017, the police discovered dismembered parts of nine people in cooler boxes and large storage boxes. Shiraishi confessed to murdering all nine people.
His lawyers appealed that he should be given a prison sentence as the victims gave their consent to be killed. Later Takahiro Shiraishi disputed these claims and acknowledged that he killed his victims without their consent.
“None of the nine victims consented to be killed, including silent consent,” the judge said, according to public broadcaster NHK.
“It is extremely grave that the lives of nine young people were taken away. The dignity of the victims was trampled upon,” the judge reportedly added.
Even though there were 16 seats available in court, 435 people turned up to watch the verdict. This case has raised the subject of how suicide is discussed on social media platforms. The Japanese government plans to bring in new regulations after this horrific case.