Seeking a reduction of his life sentence for the murder of Lindsay Ann Hawker, Tatsuya Ichihashi told the Tokyo High Court Thursday he did not intend to kill the 22-year-old British English teacher.
Lawyers for Ichihashi, who was given a life sentence by the Chiba District Court last July, argued at the start of his appeal trial that their client should serve 20 to 30 years for his crimes instead.
Ichihashi stressed the aim of his appeal was to correct factual errors presented in the district court trial, not simply to lighten the sentence it handed down.