The Tokyo High Court overturned a lower court's death sentence and gave a Peruvian man life in prison Thursday over the 2015 murder of six people in Kumagaya, Saitama Prefecture.
The court ruled that Vayron Jonathan Nakada Ludena, 34, who was found guilty of robbery and the murders, could not be held completely responsible for his actions due to his schizophrenia at the time of the crime.
Prosecutors had sought the death penalty, which the Saitama District Court granted in March 2018, concluding that he had been mentally competent enough to recognize the gravity of his actions. His defense counsel argued for his acquittal.