Japan sentences life to the murderer of baby Nhat Linh

Yasumasa Shibuya being escorted by police last year. Photo: JPT

NHKThe verdict was announced by the Chiba Prefectural Court of First Instance a few minutes ago, at 3:15 p.m. local time, or 2:15 p.m. Hanoi time.

Shibuya, 47, was charged with murdering Le Thi Nhat Linh, 9, on March 24, 2017, after abducting the Vietnamese girl on her way to school. He allegedly put Linh in his car and sexually assaulted her. Shibuya then strangled Linh to death and left her naked body in a canal in the city of Abiko.

Blood and saliva containing Linh’s DNA were found in Shibuya’s car. His DNA was also found on the girl’s body. However, in court, Shibuya denied the charges, saying the prosecutors’ evidence was fabricated. He claimed that he was fishing on the day Linh went missing.

Announcing the verdict on Shibuya this afternoon, Judge Toshiro Nohara affirmed that there were no errors in the DNA testing process.

"The DNA found on the girl's body matched the defendant's DNA sample, which clearly confirmed that the defendant was the perpetrator," he said.

Mr. Le Anh Hao, Linh's father, arrived at the court early with a worried look, holding his daughter's portrait in his arms.

Nearly two hours before the trial began, hundreds of interested citizens also poured into the Chiba courthouse to watch. According to the court, there were nearly 330 people lined up inside, five times the number of available seats.

At last month's trial, the Chiba prefectural prosecutor's office requested the death penalty for Shibuya, saying the defendant committed a heinous crime.The victim's family also collected 1.16 million signatures calling for the death penalty for Shibuya to submit to the Chiba prosecutor's office.

Mr. Ngoc