Takahiro Shiraishi, also known as the infamous “Twitter Killer” was executed by Japan on Friday for murdering and dismembering nine individuals, mostly women, after luring them via social media. Shiraishi had pleaded guilty to all murders that had rattled Japan. This is the first time in three years that the country used execution as capital punishment.
Who was Takahiro Shiraishi and why the name ‘Twitter Killer’?
In December 2020, Shiraishi was found guilty of killing, raping, and cutting up the bodies of nine people, then keeping their remains in his apartment in Zama, Kanagawa prefecture, near Tokyo.
He was arrested in October 2017 after police began looking into the case of a 23-year-old woman who had gone missing. She had shared suicidal thoughts on social media, including Twitter (now X). Her brother got into her Twitter account and helped guide the police to Shiraishi’s home, where they discovered the dismembered remains of nine people.
According to NHK and TV Asahi, all the victims had posted their thoughts online about wanting to end their lives. Shiraishi contacted them through social media using his X handle (formerly Twitter) “hangman”, and convinced them to come to his apartment near Tokyo while promising to help them die. Once there, he killed them and hid parts of their bodies in coolers and toolboxes, using cat litter to try to cover up the smell.
Shiraishi’s lawyers claimed he should be sent to prison instead of being sentenced to death, arguing that the victims had wanted to die and had agreed to it. However, the judge rejected that claim, describing Shiraishi’s actions as “cunning and cruel,” based on reports from that time.
The widely followed mass murder case captured national attention for years and sparked debates about the dangers of social media. According to court proceedings reported by Japanese public broadcaster NHK and TV Asahi, the nine victims, aged between 15 and 26, had posted messages online expressing a desire to end their lives. Shiraishi contacted them through social media before luring them to his apartment.
Shiraishi’s lawyer initially appealed the court’s decision to the Tokyo High Court, but later withdrew the appeal. As a result, the sentence became final, NHK reported.