MORIOKA, Iwate Pref. (Kyodo) A 52-year-old man was sentenced to 15 years in prison Thursday for killing a woman who won a ¥200 million lottery.
The Morioka District Court found Jinichi Kumagai, a former newspaper deliveryman, guilty of murdering his 42-year-old girlfriend, Hisako Yoshida, in Rikuzentakata, Iwate Prefecture, in 2005.
Prosecutors had sought 20 years for Kumagai, who pleaded guilty.
Kumagai stood accused of strangling Yoshida with a rope on May 2, 2005, after quarreling with her at an office in Rikuzentakata.
The prosecutors argued Kumagai received about ¥90 million from Yoshida and spent the money, which she intended to use for their new home.
Kumagai's counsel sought leniency, claiming the death was accidental and he regrets what he did.