Man dubbed ‘Twitter Killer’ for Japan murders dies after execution

Japan has carried out the death penalty for the first time since 2022, executing a man known as the “Twitter killer”. This man, Takahashi Shiraishi, was responsible for the murder and dismemberment of nine individuals he encountered online in 2017. He was sentenced to death for his crimes and was executed by hanging on Friday. Shiraishi admitted to the murders and had contacted victims on Twitter, who were suicidal, offering to assist their deaths. After committing the murders, he stored parts of the victims’ bodies in coolers and discarded other parts in a garbage dump. Japan and the US are the only G7 countries that still practice the death penalty, with strong public support for the practice. In 2022, Tomohiro Kato was also executed for a stabbing rampage in Tokyo in 2008. As of December 2023, there were 107 prisoners awaiting their death sentences in Japan. The executions of Shoko Asahara and 12 former members of the Aum Shinrikyo doomsday cult took place in 2018; Aum Shinrikyo was responsible for the 1995 sarin gas attacks in Tokyo’s subway system.

Source: https://www.theguardian.com/world/2025/jun/27/japan-executes-twitter-killer-takahiro-shiraishi