Defendant who sexually assaulted an 8-year-old girl on the way home from buying a birthday present for her father lays out a “self-serving excuse.”

The girl was crying in front of the school.

I like little girls who are still young and don’t know anything, so I targeted them.”

The man who sexually assaulted the girl, who was 8 years old at the time of the incident, stated during the trial that he targeted the victim for this reason.

On February 6, ’25, the Kanagawa Prefectural Police Sagamihara Police Station arrested Ayata Yamaguchi, 34, on suspicion of non-consensual sexual intercourse for sexually assaulting Ms. A, who was 8 years old at the time. Ms. A was on her way home after buying a birthday present for her father when she was victimized, A teacher noticed that Ms. A was crying in front of the elementary school she attended and called 110, which led to the discovery of the incident.

Yamaguchi was sentenced to two years and four months in prison on March 23, 2007, for indecent assault of an elementary school girl. He committed a similar crime less than three years after his release from prison.

At the second trial held at the Yokohama District Court on May 22, ’25, the defendant was questioned. Yamaguchi’s criminal acts, as revealed in the indictment and other documents at his first trial on April 14, were so despicable that “Yamaguchi was convicted of the crime on September 3, last year.

On September 3 of last year, Yamaguchi decided to attack Ms. A, who was passing by, because she had been drinking and her sexual desire had been aroused. After his release from prison, Yamaguchi repeatedly entered and exited support facilities, but at the time of the incident he was living on the street.

During the defendant’s questioning this time, defense counsel asked, “What do you think about this incident now?” Yamaguchi strongly insisted on the influence of alcohol.

I am very sorry for what I did to the victim. I am an alcoholic, and when I drink alcohol, my sex drive increases and I cannot control myself. I believe that my inability to abstain from alcohol was the cause of this incident.”

The defense attorney asked , “If you had not been under the influence of alcohol, would you have committed a sex crime like this one?” He answered “Yes,” and promised to work on getting rid of his alcohol addiction at a support facility after his rehabilitation.

The prosecutor revealed the defendant’s “true motive.”

Next, the prosecutor asked. Isn’t it one thing to say that one’s libido is heightened by drinking alcohol and another thing to commit a crime such as non-consensual sexual intercourse?” To this question, Yamaguchi replied, “I had no money.

I had no money and could not go to the sex industry, so I committed a crime. When I drink too much alcohol, I do things even though I know I shouldn’t. I can’t even go to the sex industry, so I commit small crimes. I couldn’t even go to a sex club, and I like little girls, so I did it.”

The prosecutor then asked, “Was this crime caused by your inability to go to the sex industry or by your desire to perform sexual acts on girls as young as elementary school age?” He continued, “I have always liked little girls, and I like to drink alcohol.

He continued, “I have always liked little girls, and I committed the crime because I got worked up after drinking alcohol.”

The defense then presented its arguments. The prosecutor said, “He committed this crime to satisfy his own sexual desire, and it is very malicious. The fear of recidivism is very high,” and he asked for seven years in prison. The defense attorney only stated, “I ask for the most lenient punishment possible.

In his final statement, Yamaguchi said, “I am very sorry for the trouble I have caused the victims and the public,” and bowed his head deeply. When asked by the defense attorney during the defendant’s questioning, “How do you feel about the victim’s family?”, Yamaguchi replied.

If I had children and they were pranked like that, I would feel pain.

Yamaguchi’s words were a “prank” that caused deep wounds that will remain in Ms. A’s body and mind for a long time to come. If we take her words as they are, we may be forgiven for thinking that she is making light of the suffering of victims of sexual crimes. It also sounds as if the defendant is saying that the incident would not have happened if he had not drunk alcohol or if he had enough money to go to a sex club.

The verdict is scheduled to be handed down on July 11.

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