Japan Executes Man Who Used Twitter to Lure and Kill Nine

A man known as the ‘Twitter killer’ was executed in Japan on Friday for the murders of nine people. Takahiro Shiraishi, who used social media to connect with his victims, was sentenced to death for the 2017 killings in his apartment in Zama. Justice Minister Keisuke Suzuki stated that the decision was made after carefully examining the case, citing the convict’s ‘extremely selfish’ motives. This execution represents a significant event, being the first in the last three years and the first under the current government. Japan’s method of capital punishment is by hanging, with limited notification given to inmates. The justice minister defends the practice given the current climate, with over a hundred inmates on death row.