How One Man Used Twitter to Lure Nine People to Their Deaths

Japan on Friday, June 27, 2025, carried out its first execution in nearly three years, hanging a man known as the “Twitter Killer.”

Takahiro Shiraishi, 34, was sentenced to death for murdering nine people in 2017, including eight women and one man.

He contacted his victims through social media platform Twitter, luring them to his apartment in Zama, near Tokyo.

The Justice Ministry confirmed that Shiraishi was hanged early Friday morning after the Justice Minister signed the execution order.

Justice Minister Keisuke Suzuki defended the decision, calling Shiraishi’s actions “extremely selfish and deeply shocking to society.”

“These were brutal crimes that created enormous fear and unrest,” Suzuki told reporters in Tokyo.

Shiraishi’s case shocked Japan, a country with relatively low violent crime rates.

He was arrested in October 2017 after police discovered dismembered body parts in his apartment.

Dubbed the “Twitter Killer” by Japanese media, his case sparked national debate about online safety and Japan’s justice system.

This was Japan’s first execution since July 2022, when a man was hanged for a 2008 stabbing rampage in Akihabara.

It also marked the first capital punishment under Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba, who took office in October 2024.

Japan’s use of the death penalty remains controversial, especially due to the method and secrecy involved.

Executions are carried out by hanging, and inmates are typically not informed until the morning of the execution.

Human rights groups, including Amnesty International, have long condemned Japan’s death penalty procedures as inhumane.

Despite criticism, public support for capital punishment in Japan remains high.

“It is not appropriate to abolish the death penalty while such violent crimes still occur,” Suzuki said during a press briefing.

There are currently 105 death row inmates in Japan, according to the Justice Ministry.

In a related development last year, Iwao Hakamada, who spent over 50 years on death row, was acquitted after a retrial.

Shiraishi never denied his crimes and was sentenced in 2020.

His appeal was rejected, finalizing his death sentence.

Japan is one of the few developed nations that still regularly uses capital punishment.

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