The Osaka High Court has confirmed the withdrawal of an appeal by convicted Kyoto Animation bomber Shinji Aoba. This means that the death sentence imposed on him remains in place. We summarize the most important information.
Further steps possible
Shinji Aoba had requested in January 2025 to withdraw his appeal against the Kyoto District Court’s verdict that sentenced him to death in January 2024. His lawyers then tried to have this move declared invalid, but failed in the Osaka High Court.
The court said there was no doubt about Aoba’s capacity. According to Judge Hisashi Ito, Aoba understood the importance of withdrawing and said before the verdict was announced that he wanted to end the trial as quickly as possible.
Despite the decision, the process is not yet fully completed. The defense still has the opportunity to appeal the decision. According to Japanese media, there are already precedents for similar situations.
Shinji Aoba was blamed for the arson attack on the Kyoto Animation studio in July 2019, which killed 36 people and injured numerous others. In addition to murder, he was convicted of 32 counts of attempted murder, arson and other crimes.
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Via Crunchyroll
First Image: © Kyoto Animation; Second Image: © Anime2You GmbH