Woman Gets 27 Yrs for Hokkaido High School Student Murder

Asahikawa, Hokkaido, June 22 (Jiji Press)–A district court in Hokkaido, northern Japan, sentenced a 23-year-old woman on Monday to 27 years in prison over a high-profile murder case in which a female high school student ultimately fell from a bridge to her death in Asahikawa in 2024. At Asahikawa District Court, Presiding Judge Yuka Tanaka handed down the sentence to Riko Uchida as sought by prosecutors. During the lay judge trial, prosecutors had said that Uchida and others had confined the then 17-year-old victim for a long time and assaulted her, following a dispute over a social media post. The prosecutors also said that as the victim was forced to sit naked on the railings of the suspension bridge and was told to fall off and die, she was put in a mental state in which she thought that jumping off was the only option. While the defense side denied that Uchida was directly involved in the murder, the prosecutors said that the defendant’s relentless and severe assaults, threats and other actions led to the death. According to the indictment, Uchida, conspired with other individuals, including a 21-year-old woman who is currently serving a 23-year prison sentence for the murder, on April 18-19, 2024. END [Copyright The Jiji Press, Ltd.]