Kaoru Kobayashi

"They're all true," Kaoru Kobayashi said of the eight charges against him as his trial opened at the Nara District Court.

Prosecutors said he had told investigators he wants to be sentenced to hang as soon as possible.

Kobayashi, who was a sales agent for the Mainichi Shimbun, is accused of killing Ka- ede Ariyama in his house after abducting her Nov. 17 while she was walking home from school. He dumped her corpse next to a road.

Kobayashi is accused of sending a photo of the girl's body to her mother via the victim's mobile phone along with a message saying, 'I've got your daughter."

In their opening statement, prosecutors said Kobayashi killed the girl because he thought she would remember his face and other details about him, because she appeared to be a clever child.

They alleged that Kobayashi sent the photo to the victim's mother because he wanted to shock the public.

Kobayashi's lawyers said they plan to ask that the court conduct a psychological examination on him to clarify his motives and the background of the incident.

The Japan Times Weekly: April 23, 2005
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