A private detective was sentenced to 30 months in prison Tuesday for swindling 10.4 million yen from a woman who was soliciting over the Internet for a hit man to kill the wife of her lover.
The Hachioji branch of the Tokyo District Court ruled that the actions of Takaharu Tabe, 40, were well-planned and carried out.
Prosecutors had demanded a four-year prison term for Tabe.
According to the court, Tabe was introduced to the woman, a 32-year-old former Tokyo Fire Department ambulance crew member, by the operator of an Internet site that brings together people seeking revenge.
The woman asked Tabe to kill her lover's wife. Although he had no intention of perpetrating the crime, he had her pay him a total of 10.4 million yen on seven occasions between January and April, claiming he needed the funds for purposes that included buying drugs to carry out the murder.
The site's operator has already been convicted of fraud and received a suspended prison sentence.
With your current subscription plan you can comment on stories. However, before writing your first comment, please create a display name in the Profile section of your subscriber account page.