Japan's Supreme Court upheld Thursday a high court ruling that
sentenced three men to death for murders they committed in 1994 while still minors.
Rejecting their petitions against the ruling, Ryuko Sakurai, presiding justice on the first petty bench of the nation's top court, said the death penalty is obligatory even though they were minors when they carried out the crimes.
The determination means that the death sentence to Masato Kobayashi, 35, Atsushi Komori, 35, and Masayoshi Haga, 35, all former "yakuza" crime syndicate members, will be finalized soon.
The last time the Supreme Court called for the death sentence for a crime committed by a minor was in 2001.
In Japan, there have been only nine people put on death row for crimes committed while minors, according to Supreme Court records that began in 1966. - Jiji Press
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