JAKARTA - A Japanese court on Tuesday sentenced a former nurse to life in prison for killing three patients by inserting disinfectant into their IVs at the Yokohama hospital, near Tokyo in 2016.
The Yokohama District Court sentenced Ayumi Kuboki, 34, who was found guilty of killing a patient by mixing an antiseptic solution into an IV bag at the hospital where she worked. Prosecutors demanded the death penalty.
Presiding Judge Kazunori Karei said Kuboki, who admitted to the murder, could be held accountable for crimes as pointed out by prosecutors during the trial, saying, "He committed such an act knowing that it was against the law," citing Kyodo News Nov. 9.
However, he concluded that it was reasonable to sentence Kuboki to life in prison, as his behavior during the trial showed he was remorseful.
"He understood the gravity of the crime, and even said in his last statement he wanted to atone for his own death," Karei said.
"By facing the burden of his guilt for the rest of his life, it's only natural that he gets back on the right track in life."
Kuboki's lawyers demanded a life sentence, arguing the former nurse had a reduced capacity at the time of the crime in September 2016, because she had schizophrenia.
Meanwhile, prosecutors said Kuboki displayed traits of an autism spectrum disorder, but he was fully competent to stand trial and it did not affect his decision-making or play a role in his crimes at the hospital, which has admitted terminally ill patients.
According to the verdict, Kuboki intentionally killed three hospitalized patients, Sozo Nishikawa (88), Asae Okitsu (78) and Nobuo Yamaki (88) at the institution formerly known as Oguchi Hospital, by inserting an antiseptic solution into their IV bags.
During one of the trials, Kuboki, who was first arrested in July 2018, said, "In order not to be accused by family members if patients died during my working hours, I made them die while I was off duty."
To note, he also apologized to the patient's family members during the trial, which began last month. Meanwhile, the hospital has been closed since 2019.
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