A 31-year-old man was sentenced Thursday to life in prison for murdering a 17-year-old girl in Numazu, Shizuoka Prefecture, whom he had stalked because she refused to date him again.

The Numazu branch of the Shizuoka District Court found Hidemasa Hiraguri guilty of stalking and murdering Maki Otake on April 19, 2000.

In handing down the sentence, Presiding Judge Sachiko Takahashi said the crime was dreadful but not premeditated and there is room for the accused to undergo correctional rehabilitation.

Prosecutors had asked for the death sentence and issued a statement saying the verdict was "extremely regrettable." Sources close to the case said they are considering an appeal.