Japanese bathtub killer loses appeal
A Japanese man who was convicted of raping and killing a British English teacher and burying her body in a sand-filled bathtub loses his appeal against a life sentence.
Tatsuya Ichihashi, 33, had been living in the apartment where the naked body of his teacher, Lindsay Hawker, 22, was found in in a bath in 2007.
He was caught and convicted after a three year manhunt. He admitted at the opening of his trial that he had raped her and and caused her death.
Ichihashi initially fled when police arrived at his Tokyo apartment to question him, and mutilated his appearance including cutting himself with scissors to evade capture.
At the High Court in Tokyo, he appealed against the life sentence which was handed down last July, saying that he had not intended to kill the woman and he was unaware he had been suffocating her. He claimed he tried to revive her, and his lawyers argued a life sentence was too harsh.
But his appeal was rejected by the court, which said he had displayed murderous intent with his actions. Presiding judge Yoshinobu Lida told the court that Ishihashi resorted to violence to satisfy his desire.
Judges read a a statement from Julia and William, the parents of Ms Hawker, of Brandon, near Coventry, in which they said they believed the killer had shown no remorse. Her parents were not in court.
He must now serve a minimum of 10 years in prison, after which he could be eligible for parole.
At the time of the verdict, Ms Hawker’s family had called for a death sentence, but were satisfied with the outcome of the trial.