Kiyotaka Katsuta

Case record: Kiyotaka Katsuta

Kiyotaka Katsuta (勝田 清孝; Katsuta Kiyotaka; August 29, 1948 - November 30, 2000) was a Japanese serial killer and thief.

Background

Katsuta was described as a serial killer and thief who committed several murders and robbed several houses before being apprehended. The exact number of murders he committed was presented as unknown. He was described as a firefighter.

He was said to have been mistrustful of fellow inmates in prison. During incarceration, he met a Christian woman known as Yūko Kurusu, who later became his sister-in-law. After that, he changed his name to Kiyotaka Fujiwara.

A 1984 film, Renzoku satsujinki: Reiketsu (連続殺人鬼 冷血; Renzoku satsujinki: Reiketsu), was described as being based on his crimes. In the film, the murderer was named Kiyoshi Tatsuta, and Kazuya Nakayama portrayed Tatsuta.

The offence

From 1972 to 1982, Katsuta went on a killing spree, murdering and robbing eight people.

The police were said to have accused him of eight murders, while he might have killed 22 people. He killed his victims by strangling and shooting them.

The police suspected that Katsuta raped some of his victims before killing them, but were not able to prove this. The suspicion was also presented with uncertainty as “rape?”.

It was stated that Katsuta “shot two chauffeurs and six bar hostesses.”

He also stole a ring from a victim, Yoshiko Shikina, a beautician from Showa-ku, Nagoya, in August 1977 after killing her.

Investigation

The incident was described as being officially named Metropolitan Designated Case 113.

The police suspected Katsuta raped some victims before killing them, but were not able to prove this. Katsuta was initially thought to have only killed his victims while robbing them, but later confessed to seven other murders.

Arrest

On January 31, 1983, Katsuta was arrested while threatening a man with a handgun.

Before the arrest, it was stated that on October 27, he hit a police officer with a car and stole a handgun. On October 31, he attempted to commit a robbery but killed a man with a handgun during the failed attempt. On November 1, he shot another man, who survived. Because he was armed, Katsuta was described as continuing to elude capture.

Trial

On January 17, 1994, the Supreme Court sentenced Katsuta to two death penalties for the first time in the history of the Japanese Supreme Court. It was stated that one death penalty was for seven murders between 1972 and 1980, and the other was for killing a man with a handgun in 1982.

It was also stated that the Supreme Court upheld his two death penalty convictions, a first in the history of the Japanese Supreme Court.

Sentencing

The Supreme Court imposed two death penalties on January 17, 1994:

• one for seven murders between 1972 and 1980
• one for killing a man with a handgun in 1982

Outcome

Katsuta was executed by hanging on November 30, 2000.

Aftermath

A Nagoya District Court matter was described in connection with property from a victim. A diamond ring that belonged to one of eight victims of serial killer Kiyotaka Katsuta was described as having been sold in 1994 by a court official without the permission of the dead woman's family. It was later learned that the ring was found in a Nagoya antique shop and would be returned.

Officials at the Nagoya District Court said the 1-carat diamond ring was found in a Nagoya antique shop. The court notified the relatives of the victim, Yoshiko Shikina, who lived in Okinawa Prefecture, and the diamond was to be returned to its rightful heir. It was also stated that Katsuta stole the ring from Shikina in August 1977 after killing her.

Other details

Katsuta was described as having killed eight people for which he was charged, and the motive was presented as “PC-nonspecific.” The disposition was described as “Convicted; sentence unknown.”