Janice R. Andrews
Written by Justin McCurry on Thu, Jan 25, 2024, at 6:11 PM GMT
A Japanese court has rendered a historic decision, sending 45-year-old Shinji Aoba to death for the heinous arson attack on Kyoto Animation, popularly known as KyoAni, that occurred in 2019 and resulted in the deaths of 36 people. The incident stunned both the anime community in Japan and around the world.
Reportedly harbouring resentment towards the studio, Aoba broke into the Kyoto Animation building, poured fuel on the entrance, lit it on fire and said, “drop dead.” 32 more people were injured in the incident, many of them were young people, and survivors called it Japan’s bloodiest crime in decades.
The judge decided on Thursday that Aoba was “neither insane nor suffering diminished mental capacity at the time of the crime,” rejecting the defense’s contention that he had a mental illness at the time of the offence. The victims’ families crowded the courtroom, witnessing tearful moments as the judge read out the decision.
A prison guard pulled Aoba into the courtroom in a wheelchair, his burn injuries from the incident clearly visible. As the death penalty was imposed, he chose not to speak in front of the court.
One of the few sophisticated nations that still uses the death sentence is Japan, which only applies to someone found guilty of repeated killings. Although the majority of Japanese people are in favour of the death penalty, the European Union and human rights organisations are against it.
Kyoto Animation angrily refuted Aoba’s accusation that it had plagiarised his novel. A stairwell that led to the roof was where several of the dead were discovered, indicating a last-ditch attempt to get away. Those who survived described the tremendous effort to escape the fire.
90% of the arsonist’s body was burned, and he required intensive medical care, including speech-restoring surgery. According to reports, Aoba lost consciousness for a few weeks following the incident.
There were 107 individuals on death row as of December 2022, the year of Japan’s last execution. Condemned prisoners frequently wait years for their execution, learning of their destiny only a few hours before they are hanged.
With shows like “The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya” and “K-ON!”, Kyoto Animation, which was established in 1981, gained popularity among fans of anime. Following the incident, messages of support from all around the world flooded in, and a US animation company used crowdfunding to raise $2.4 million to help the studio rebuild.
