Is putting twin bodies in cardboard a “corpse abandonment crime” Technical intern trainees who gave birth in isolation Argued at the Supreme Court: Tokyo Shimbun TOKYO Web

At the appeal trial of former Vietnamese technical intern Leh Thi Thuy Linh (24), who was found guilty in the first and second trials for abandoning the bodies of stillborn twins in his room. The 2nd Petty Bench of the Supreme Court (Chairman Koichi Kusano) held arguments on the 24th. The defense attorneys once again asserted their innocence, saying, “I had the intention of holding a funeral just after the stillbirth.” A judgment date will be set at a later date. (Keigo Okumura)

The appeal’s point was that the body was put in a cardboard box.packing（Konpou）Whether the act you did constitutes “concealment” and the crime of abandoning a corpse is established. Oral argument is a procedure that is open when the judgment is changed, and there is a possibility that the second trial Fukuoka High Court’s conviction with a suspended sentence will be reconsidered.

The defense attorney pointed out, “The act was taken in the marginal situation of stillbirth. It does not make it difficult to find the corpse or prevent a proper funeral.” On the other hand, the prosecutor’s office said, “It can be recognized that the concealment is sufficient just by wrapping it in a box, placing it on a shelf, and disguising it as ordinary luggage.”

◆ “I want the environment to change so that I can give birth with peace of mind.”

At a press conference in Tokyo after hearing the arguments, Mr. Leh said, “I did not throw away or hide the children’s bodies.” “Pregnant technical intern trainees are under a lot of pressure, and women who give birth alone suffer a lot of physical and mental pain,” he said. I want society to change to one that protects the environment.”

Ken Hasuda, director of Jikei Hospital in Kumamoto City, which has set up a “baby post” to anonymously keep children whose parents cannot raise them, also attended the press conference. He said, “If (Defendant Leh) is found guilty, false information will spread that he will be arrested if he gives birth to a stillbirth or a miscarriage at home.”

According to the 1st and 2nd trial decisions, in November 2020, when Defendant Leh was a technical intern trainee, he put the bodies of two stillborn boys in a cardboard box and sealed it at his home in Ashikita, Kumamoto Prefecture. placed on top. In July 2009, the Kumamoto District Court sentenced him to eight months in prison with a three-year suspension of execution. commuted to