JAPAN. KOBAYASHI WITHDRAWS APPEAL OVER DEATH SENTENCE

Kaoru Kobayashi withdrew his appeal against his death sentence for kidnapping and killing a 7-year-old girl in Japan’s Nara Prefecture in 2004, his defence counsel said. Kobayashi, 37, withdrew the appeal that his lawyers filed with the Osaka High Court immediately after the Nara District Court sentenced him to death on September 26, an unusual decision that will mean the implementation of the death penalty for a defendant who killed only one victim.
The defence counsel said they have no intention of filing an objection to Kobayashi's action, implying his death sentence will be final without a hearing at an appeals court. He was quoted as telling the lawyers, ''Society does not understand me whatever I say.''
The Nara District Court sentenced Kobayashi to death for kidnapping the girl on Nov. 17, 2004, and taking her to his apartment in Sango, Nara Prefecture. After molesting her, Kobayashi killed her, inflicted damage on her body and dumped it in a gutter on a farm road in Heguri, Nara Prefecture, according to the ruling.
He also took a photo of her body and sent it to her mother via mobile phone, and blackmailed the mother about a month later, saying he would target the girl's younger sister as well.