Japanese Man's Life Sentence For Drug Smuggling Finalized In China
A Chinese high court has finalized a life sentence handed down to a Japanese man for drug smuggling.
The Higher People's Court in the southern province of Guangdong on Friday upheld a lower court sentencing of Sakuragi Takuma in 2019. Sakuragi is a former assemblyman of Inazawa City in Aichi Prefecture, central Japan.
The move means his life sentence has been finalized in China's two-tier judicial system.
Sakuragi had been detained for possessing more than three kilograms of stimulants in a suitcase at an airport in the city of Guangzhou in 2013.
The 79-year-old pleaded not guilty throughout the proceedings. He said he was asked by a Nigerian acquaintance to take the suitcase and was not aware that it contained illegal drugs.
The higher court dismissed the argument, saying the defendant was aware of the risk of carrying the suitcase.
Sakuragi's lawyer says that in China, those sentenced to life can have their punishment mitigated by serving about three years of their terms and meeting other conditions.
Japan and China are now in talks toward concluding a treaty to mutually hand over people sentenced in each other's country to allow them serve out their sentences in their home countries. The lawyer vows to continue efforts to allow Sakuragi to return to Japan.
