Sapporo court sentences farmer to 6 1/2 years for mosque arson

On October 29, the Sapporo District Court handed down a six and a half year prison sentence to a 37-year-old farmer, Ryotaro Ishii, for arson of a mosque and another building in Ebetsu, Hokkaido. The charges included arson of uninhabited buildings. The initial trial hearing in September suggested a nine-year sentence from prosecutors, but the defense's plea for leniency, citing Ishii's subsequent charitable donations totaling 3.5 million yen ($22,000), led prosecutors to reduce the request to eight years before the final verdict.

According to the ruling, Ishii used a lighter and gasoline to set fire to plastic bottles between February 15 and 28, targeting both a mosque and a building serving as an office and residence for a Pakistani resident in Ebetsu. The fires caused significant damage to the structures. Judge Shiro Watanabe, who presided over the case, expressed strong disapproval of Ishii's actions, stating that the attacker committed the crimes repeatedly over a short period, causing considerable shock and anxiety within the local community.

Watanabe noted that Ishii had reportedly watched YouTube videos slandering Pakistani residents and others in Ebetsu, which he deemed as a factor prompting the attacks. However, Watanabe acknowledged that he took internet information of uncertain origin at face value. Following the verdict, Watanabe sternly admonished Ishii, urging him to reconsider his actions. Ishii responded by nodding in agreement multiple times.