A 51-year-old moneylender pleaded not guilty Friday before the Urawa District Court to six charges related to an alleged murder-for-insurance plot that killed two and left one in hospital.
"I haven't even seen or touched the bodies," said Shigeru Yagi, from Honjo in Saitama Prefecture, denying charges that he masterminded the killings and fraud for which he and three women stand accused.
The women, who also appeared before the court the same day to face similar charges, pleaded guilty and told the court that Yagi played the central role in the events.
The three are Analie Sato Kawamura, a 35-year-old Filipino, Mayumi Take, 33, and Takako Morita, 39.