“Itadaki Joshi Riri-chan” sentenced to 9 years in prison For some reason, it’s “too serious” compared to fraud and sex crimes. What is the lawyer’s opinion? J-CAST News[Show full text]

The crime of voyeurism is “understood to be a fairly low-level statutory penalty.”

Takayuki Kobayashi, attorney at Legal Plus Ichikawa Law Office (Ichikawa City, Chiba Prefecture), told J-CAST News on April 24 that it is “difficult” to compare different crimes and determine whether they are serious or light. and expresses his opinion.

Lawyer Kobayashi said, “Sex crimes and voyeurism are, of course, serious human rights violations, so I think they are serious crimes that hurt the victims,” and that the law imposes statutory penalties for each crime. “We will look at how serious the legal punishment is,” he said.

“Based on what kind of crime the defendant committed, the legal punishment is determined first, and then the legal punishment falls within the most severe category. After taking into account the general circumstances such as past convictions and the person’s remorseful attitude, we decide how many years of imprisonment and how much the fine should be. The punishment will be determined.”

In Watanabe’s case, the maximum legal penalty is 15 years in prison. The most serious offenses of fraud, aiding and abetting fraud, and tax evasion carry a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison, but the maximum sentence is said to be increased because the suspect is involved in multiple crimes.

Meanwhile, a former instructor at Yotsuya Otsuka was charged with voyeurism, which carries a maximum sentence of three years in prison. Lawyer Kobayashi said that the Act on Punishment of Sexual Photography, which stipulates this, is relatively new, having been enacted in 2023, and that until then, punishments had been based on the ordinances of each prefecture. In the first place, the act of voyeurism itself is stipulated as an act that carries a fairly low legal penalty.”

Lawyer Kobayashi said, “The law itself is decided by the Diet, so if there is a lot of public opinion that “the maximum of three years for the crime of voyeurism is a bit too lenient”, it may be revised, or if the “Top 10 of Fraud” If there is a debate about whether 2020 is too long, it could be shortened.I think that is a matter for politics to decide,” he said, explaining the possibility of change.

“Itadaki Joshi Riri-chan” says, “I have no choice but to point out the maliciousness.”

With that in mind, can we say that the current nine-year prison sentence for Watanabe is appropriate?

Attorney Kobayashi explains that in cases of fraud, the most important factor in determining punishment is the amount. “Eating and drinking for free and evading taxi rides are also considered frauds,” and when comparing these types of scams including those involving low amounts, “We cannot help but point out that they are malicious in the sense that they involve a large number of victims and the amount of money involved is very large.” “I don’t think the answer is nine years in prison because it was a malicious case,” he said.