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© KYODO19-year-old arrested for attacking girl; hints at involvement in fatal arson
KOFU, Yamanashi©2024 GPlusMedia Inc.
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© KYODO
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Good
You lost me at 19 year old 'youth'.
snowymountainhell
Perhaps the headline is backwards today and we will learn more as the investigation unfolds?. - The girl came upon this arsonist in the night. He assaulted her as she attempted to flee. (He didn’t go the the house just to punch her in the back of the head.) That “oil” smell may have been an accelerant. - Dig DEEPER Kyodo “journalists” for the real story from the J.P.D.
snowymountainhell
He’s no “youth”. Come on, time to challenge the J laws and set a precedent by trying and convicting this 19yo murderer as an adult.
englisc aspyrgend
Agreed, at 19 not a youth in most countries but obviously is in Japan. It does seem irrational to most of us but whether Japan will change is debatable.
Sounds like there are some very serious underlying mental issues, perhaps he should be locked away in a mental institution for the rest of his life.
Aly Rustom
charge him as an adult. He knew what he was doing
Fighto!
Hang the violent worthless animal.
Rest in Peace to the poor victims. Horrifying deaths.
Moskollo
theres a story about a nutcase killing innocent people or kids everyday recently. Isn’t it time the government did something other than have their picture taken?
jalan5
Michael Machida
He is a youth. If you have lived in Japan as long as I have, you would agree they are still youths.
Mark
A monster NOT a youth!!
Dukeleto
Maybe I missed something. So the two daughters escaped and the parents end up dying inside the house???
Inaka Life
When it comes to violent attacks like rape and murder (among other crimes) public safety should trump these types of laws that protect the identity of minors. Especially when we are talking about someone who is 19.
ShinkansenCaboose
From my experience, 25 and under should be called youth in Japan.
Gaijinjland
Only in Japan is a a 19yo man considered a minor. They don't even check ID's for alcohol. Just a box on the screen asking if you're 20 or older. The only option is yes
Strangerland
No, not only in Japan. Also, there's that whole problem with the science behind why they are considered minors, but that one doesn't bother the non-scientific.
Sheikh Yerboaby
19 years old is NOT a minor......although Japanese 19 year olds are about the mental age of 14 year olds in the real world ;)
TheReds
He is a youth and a minor because the stupid system said so. Wait a minute, they may be right because he is in fact a devil, not human.
Addfwyn
Pyromania seems particularly common around that age range from many studies I have read. Hopefully after he is detained he can get the help he needs to become productive, 19 is so young still. It is a bit disturbing to me so many people are always so quick to jump to the death penalty here.
I don't hold my breath anyway, Japan doesn't have the best track record at rehabilitating prisoners, the buck seems to stop at punishment and not figuring out the actual problems.
purple_depressed_bacon
This 19 year old is neither a "youth" nor a "minor" despite whatever the silly Japanese laws say. At this age, he should be able to tell right from wrong. Assaulting someone? Wrong. Committing arson? Wrong. Conclusion - throw the book at him and charge him as an adult.
It's no wonder so many university students and fresh graduates here remain so immature and unfit to start adulting and stand on their own two feet. Their parents pamper them by letting them stay at home well into their adult years; society pampers them by perpetuating this ridiculous notion among other things, and even the government pampers them by having the official adult age be at 20. Seriously, GROW UP.
garypen
I hope they do a thorough post-mortem on the parents. It's odd that two conscious adults in their 50's couldn't escape from the first floor before being consumed by fire and/or smoke.
Fire is often used by criminals in an attempt to cover up murders.
Sven Asai
No, some here are right, they are still like minors in comparison to elsewhere. You could raise that age limit even to 24 or 26 , and it still would fit in most cases. Watch the entrance of Disneyland , sales of anime figures or applauding to cute yurukara and a lot more, if you don’t believe it and need a clue.
Kyo wa heiwa dayo ne
There has to be more to this story as the details just don't add up.
deepk
Parents were sleeping.
Elder sister called the police
Younger sister attacked from behind.Who was the boy quarreling with ?
Johansawada
@deepk
yes very confusing indeed
but most likely the quarrel was with the elder sister
and after the younger sister came downstairs she was assaulted by this 19yr devil and that gave the elder sister a chance to call the police...
Richard Gallagher
Tried as a minor doesn't equate to case dismissed or a failure to obtain justice. Lotsa honky rednecks on this site.
As for the incident: At around 3:45 a.m. on Oct. 12, police received a call saying that a house in Kofu had been burglarized, and when officers from the Minami-Kofu Police Station rushed to the scene, they found that a fire had broken out in the two-story wooden house. The woman who was assaulted was sleeping downstairs.
Danielsan
So what if he is a "youth. " 19 is old enough to know right from wrong.
He should head for the gallows immediately after a fair trial.
If innocent unborn babies can be aborted as a choice, there is no moral or logical reason why murderous predators cannot be systematically executed as well.
Yubaru
No not really, only here.
Mocheake
He may be young but he is not a youth. Old enough to do this kind of crime then old enough to do some real hard time.
Brian Wheway
Touching the side of a hot stove or part of a car engine, the pain from that burn is agony, as for being trapped in a house thats on fire is unimaginable, god knows the pain and torcher they suffered.
Chico3
Hang in there, guy (I mean "youth"). You're next.
3RENSHO
"It's odd that two conscious adults in their 50's couldn't escape from the first floor before being consumed by fire and/or smoke."
Odd? Nothing is odd about their deaths. Conscious? They were sleeping, as many people are wont to do at three o'clock in the morning. Is it odd to be asleep at 03:00? Judging by the height of the flames at more than 20 metres, the fire accelerated extremely quickly and the wooden structure was completely involved within seconds...there was no escape -- they died in their beds.
garypen
"It's odd that two conscious adults in their 50's couldn't escape from the first floor before being consumed by fire and/or smoke."
Then who was the murderer arguing with? The original article about the fire, which for some reason is no longer available, said both sisters were upstairs, and the younger sister heard the parents arguing with someone, and came downstairs where she was attacked.
That is why I assumed they were conscious. Of course, it's understandable if they were sleeping.
Kyakusenbi_Arimasu
Physical age and mental age need a chart and real reasons to adjust them accordingly.
titin
Youth until the age of 65.
mountainpear
Apparently the daughters escaped from the second storey window. But one of them (probably the uninjured one) was in a relationship with the suspect so who knows if what they say is credible.
Zaphod
He is 18, so will get away with a slap on the wrist.
garypen
FYI, the parents were murdered before the house was set on fire, just as I suspected.
"Police: Victims in arson attack died from stab wounds"
https://www.asahi.com/ajw/articles/14461480
602miko
19 yrs old it's not youth anymore. Below 18 yes, that's the youth youngster