Japan Court Sentences Man to Death for Brutal Gun and Knife Rampage That Killed Four

A Japanese man who carried out a horrific gun and knife attack that left four people dead in 2023 has been sentenced to death, after a court rejected claims that he was suffering from schizophrenia.

Thirty-four-year-old Masanori Aoki was found guilty of murdering two women and two police officers in the city of Nakano, central Japan. The court ruled that despite Aoki’s history of delusions, he was fully aware of his actions when he launched the assault.

According to prosecutors, Aoki first stabbed two women who were out for an evening walk before turning his hunting rifle on the police officers who responded to the emergency call. They described the killings as acts of “exceptional cruelty and cold-bloodedness.”

Aoki, dressed in a camouflage outfit, hat, sunglasses and a mask, believed the women were gossiping about him, local media reported. It remains unclear if he knew his victims.

Following the attack, the killer barricaded himself inside his parents’ home for 12 hours before surrendering. His father, Masamichi Aoki, is the speaker of Nakano City’s assembly.

Residents were ordered to stay indoors during the standoff, with police broadcasting safety updates through neighbourhood loudspeakers and door-to-door warnings.

Japan has some of the strictest gun laws in the world, allowing only limited ownership of hunting rifles and airguns after rigorous background checks and mental health assessments. Gun violence is extremely rare, and the last fatal shooting of multiple police officers occurred more than three decades ago.

The 2023 attack sent shockwaves across Japan, prompting authorities to tighten firearm regulations further, particularly restricting “half-rifles” — the type of weapon Aoki used.

The case rekindled national debate on mental health and gun control, echoing the public outrage that followed the 2022 assassination of former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe.