<figure id="attachment_449333" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-449333" style="width: 825px" class="wp-caption alignnone"><a href="#" data-ident_hash="feacb345"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/fridaydigital/image/private/t_article_image/wpmedia/2025/12/202a624c4c1b9d17ad32725f8b855a78.jpg" alt=""></a><figcaption id="caption-attachment-449333" class="wp-caption-text">Saito immediately after his arrest in December 2010.</figcaption></figure>
<p> He beat three members of a family to death by striking them with an axe multiple times on the head, poured kerosene inside the house, and set it on fire.</p>
<p> On December 2, the Saitama District Court announced to the media that the first trial of Atsushi Saito, 43, an unemployed man accused of murdering a US citizen, his wife, and eldest daughter in Hanno City, Saitama Prefecture, with an axe, will be held on February 16, 2014. &#8220;The incident took place in December 2010.</p>
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<p><span class="strongInContent"> The incident occurred in December 2010. Immediately after his arrest, Saito has consistently denied committing the crime. In order to investigate Saito&#8217;s mental condition, the prosecution detained him twice for about 10 months starting in February 2011. The defense intends to argue Saito&#8217;s innocence on the grounds that he lacked the capacity for responsibility, and the issue of whether or not he has the capacity for criminal responsibility is likely to be a point of contention at trial.</span></p>
<p> FRIDAY Digital&#8221; reported the entire crime in detail immediately after the trouble occurred. Let us look back at the unprecedented incident that took the lives of three members of a happy family.</p>
<h2> &#8220;Even though it was Christmas Sunday.</h2>
<p> On December 25, 2010, Saitama Prefectural Police arrested Saito, a resident of Hanno City, on suspicion of attempted murder. Shortly after 7:00 a.m. that morning, Saito entered the home of Mr. A, a U.S. citizen who lived nearby. He beat Mr. A, his wife, and their eldest daughter to death one after another with an axe.</p>
<p><span class="strongInContent"> The security camera footage showed an image of what appeared to be Saito dressed in dark clothing walking away from Mr. A&#8217;s house without a care in the world. Several blunt objects, including an axe and a hammer, were found at Saito&#8217;s house, about 60 meters away from the scene.</span></p>
<p><span class="strongInContent"> Saito chased after Ms. A and the others, repeatedly hitting them in the head and neck, and Ms. A&#8217;s body had multiple scars from the blows and her head was deformed. &#8230;&#8230; The cause of death was cervical cord injury. When the police arrived at the scene, they found that Mr. A and three others had already died after being repeatedly beaten with a blunt object. When asked, Saito refused to give a statement, saying, &#8216;I don&#8217;t want to talk about it.</span></p>
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<p> The scene of the incident was in a quiet bedroom community. When a reporter from &#8220;FRIDAY Digital&#8221; visited the scene immediately after the incident, he heard graphic testimonies from nearby residents.</p>
<p><span class="strongInContent"> The area is usually a very quiet residential area. I was startled when I heard a man&#8217;s voice in the morning saying, &#8216;Stop it! I was surprised when I heard a man&#8217;s voice saying, &#8220;Stop it! A woman screamed, &#8220;Crikey! A woman screamed, &#8220;Oh my God! Someone must have called 110. Police officers immediately arrived on the scene, and even though it was Christmas Sunday, the atmosphere was very tense.</span></p>
<p> Mr. A came to Japan about 40 years ago. After graduating from a famous private university in Tokyo, he began working for a major company and married his wife. According to neighbors, Mr. and Mrs. A moved from Tokyo about six years before the incident. They were a pleasant couple who spoke fluent Japanese and greeted each other in a friendly manner. However, they are said to have had problems with defendant Saito for some time.</p>
<div data-friday-nextpage-lead=" Repeated harassment"></div>
<h2>The psychiatrist&#8217;s testimony is key.&#8221;</h2>
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<p><span class="strongInContent"> In the summer of 2009, the side of a luxury foreign car owned by Mr. A was gouged by a screwdriver-like object. His wife told those around her, &#8216;The repair cost me one million yen. I don&#8217;t know why it was scratched.</span></p>
<p><span class="strongInContent"> The defendant Saito was arrested on suspicion of destruction of property in connection with this trouble. Saito had been harassing Ms. A by throwing stones at her house on numerous occasions, and had been arrested on multiple occasions. However, in each case, the evidence was insufficient and the charges were dropped.</span></p>
<p> (A former reporter) Given his past troubles and his history of repeatedly beating his victims with a blunt instrument and setting fire to their homes, one can sense that Saito has a strong grudge against Mr. A&#8217;s family. However, a clear motive for the crime is unknown.</p>
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<p> Former Kanagawa Prefectural Police detective and crime journalist Taihei Ogawa explains Saito&#8217;s upcoming trial.</p>
<p><span class="strongInContent"> The first is the motive for the crime. The defendant seems to have consistently denied involvement in the case, but to what extent will he talk about his relationship with the victim&#8217;s family? The focus will be on how well the prosecution understands the background of the case.</span></p>
<p><span class="strongInContent"> The second is whether the defendant is criminally responsible. Probably early on, the psychiatrist who handled the expert witness detention will appear as a witness. The doctor&#8217;s testimony will be key. If he is found to be criminally responsible, he could face the maximum penalty since three members of his family lost their lives.&#8221;</span></p>
<p> The trial is scheduled for a total of seven sessions, and the verdict is scheduled to be handed down on March 16, 2014.</p>


 Shinji Hasuo

 The first trial in the gruesome case was set for February 16, 2014. The defendant is alleged to have beaten three members of a family living in Saitama Prefecture to death by hitting them multiple times with an axe. The defendant has consistently denied involvement in the crime since his arrest. This article introduces the whole case and the points of contention in the trial.

The whole gruesome crime was committed by a man who beat three members of a family to death.

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