A man who strangled his father to death in what he called a mercy killing clouded by emotional distress walked free from court Friday after the judge heard a harrowing tale of hardship and gave him a three-year prison term suspended for four years.
The Tsu District Court heard that 37-year-old Shinya Fujii and his 60-year-old father, Satoshi, had lost their home, were in debt and were reduced to living in a small car at the time of the murder.
Fujii admitted strangling his father on Dec. 4 while the car was parked in the town of Taki, Mie Prefecture, but said his father had urged him to do it.