Defense lawyers for senior Aum Shinrikyo figure Kiyohide Hayakawa asked the Tokyo District Court on Friday not to issue a death sentence for their client, citing what they called Hayakawa's sincere attitude in telling the truth.
Hayakawa is charged with seven crimes, including the 1989 killing of a Yokohama lawyer, his wife and their baby son, as well as lynching errant cultist Shuji Taguchi and helping Aum illegally produce LSD.
In their final argument before the court's scheduled ruling on July 28, the defense team said the death penalty demanded by prosecutors is too severe, given the fact that Ikuo Hayashi, another senior cult figure, was sentenced to life imprisonment for his role in the nerve gas attack on the Tokyo subway system in March 1995 that killed 12 people.
After the lawyers read their statement, Hayakawa, apparently overwhelmed with emotion, said at the witness stand that he truly wanted to apologize to the victims and their families.
"I apologize from the bottom of my heart that my stupidity and arrogance has caused tremendous sadness and anger that can never be healed," he said.
Hayakawa also said he is embarrassed about his fanatic belief in cult founder and guru Shoko Asahara. "At that time, I could not doubt the spiritual power of the guru," he said. "I feel sorry and ashamed of my existence as a human being."