A Japanese man suffering from Alzheimer’s disease was sentenced on May 31 to four and a half years in prison for the murder of his granddaughter with whom he lived.
On September 9, 2020, 88-year-old Susumu Tomizawa got into an argument with 16-year-old Tomomi. Having drunk earlier in the evening and angry, he takes a 17 centimeter kitchen knife. Afterwards, he goes to his granddaughter’s room to stab her in the neck several times.
Moments later, the octogenarian calls his son telling him that he has found Tomomi’s bloodied body. The police arrive soon after and arrest Susumu.
Last month, the man admitted to killing his granddaughter, but he does not remember his actions.
Because he suffers from Alzheimer’s disease, his lawyers told the court that the man should not be held criminally responsible, as his disease caused dementia and memory loss. He therefore pleaded not guilty.
However, the situation turned around: the court of Fukui City disagreed.
On May 31, Susumu Tomizawa received a four and a half year prison sentence for murder.
Doctors who assessed his condition insisted he had a motive to commit murder. “His actions were deliberate and consistent with his intent to kill,” forensic psychiatrist Hiroki Nakagawa told the court.
“The defendant was in a state of mental exhaustion during the crime and he had great difficulty in judging right and wrong, but he was not in a state where he was incapable of committing a crime,” said Judge Yoshinobu Kawamura.