Girl, 15, stabbed two strangers in Japan because she wanted 'death penalty'
TOKYO - A teenage girl arrested over a random attack with a knife in Tokyo's Shibuya district has said she stabbed two people because she "wanted to get the death penalty”.
The girl, who was arrested on Saturday on suspicion of attempted murder, has been identified as a 15-year-old junior high school student from Toda, Saitama Prefecture. Her name has been withheld because she is a minor.
According to Japanese media, the teen stabbed a 53-year-old woman and her 19-year-old daughter from behind with a kitchen knife.
The incident took place around 7:20pm near Shibuya Station.
The teen was in possession of three small knives when arrested.
Both victims suffered serious injuries, with the daughter sustaining a stab wound to her back more than 10cm deep, police said.
While in custody, the teen said she stabbed the two victims because she wanted the death penalty.
“I wanted to get death penalty, so I tried to kill two women that I happened to run into."
The Japan Times reported that the girl denied the attack was "linked to any trouble at home or school".
Citing investigative sources, however, Kyodo News said the teen had wanted to do a "practice run" to see if she was capable of killing a person as she had plans to kill her mother.
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