A stepfather on trial for his 5-year-old daughter's death repeatedly apologized during a court hearing on Friday, saying it was all his fault for not stopping the relentless abuse of the girl.
Yudai Funato, 34, was indicted for abandonment resulting in the death of his stepdaughter, Yua. The child died in March 2018 in Meguro Ward, Tokyo.
Speaking in a quavering voice
"She was a gas and so bubbly. She was a good girl in so many ways. I think she was in indescribable sorrow [having been abused]," he said at the fourth hearing of his lay judge trial, which was held under presiding Judge Minoru Morishita at the Tokyo District Court.
The questioning of the defendant began at 10 a.m as the court opened. With the examination of witnesses and a break, it continued until 5 p.m., when the court was adjourned. At the beginning, Funato looked calm and answered questions in a bland tone, but when asked about his feelings for Yua at the end of the questioning, his voice trembled with tears.
It has been reported that Yua wrote in her notebook, "Please, forgive me, please," among other messages to her parents. Asked about how he felt as he read the message after the incident, Funato said: "I got an impression that it was written only to please me. I feel so sad and pathetic."
Funato also apologized to Yuri Funato, 27, his former wife and Yua's biological mother. Yuri Funato was found guilty of abandonment resulting in the death of her daughter in the court of first instance and has appealed to a higher court. He said, "I now feel I'm the only one to blame [for the case]."
Exploded with rage
Funato also explained how he escalated his violence. When he married Yuri in April 2016, he dreamed of having "a cheerful family filled with smiles" with Yuri and Yua, he recalled.
However, he said: "I tried to tell her [Yua] in words, but disciplining her didn't go well. Then my anger built up and [I] started threatening her." When things still did not go as he wanted, he "used violence."
After moving to Tokyo in January 2018, he vented his rage at the girl over her lifestyle and started abusing her more severely.
About the incident in late February 2018, he said: "I ordered Yua to study how to read a clock by herself, but she was sleeping in the kid's room. So, I grabbed her neck to lift her to take her to the bathroom.
"Then I jumped on top of Yua lying on her back, poured cold water on her with a shower [hose] and hit her in the face several times. I have no recollection that I pulled my punches," he added.
Yua was taken into temporary protective custody twice by a child consultation center for abuse. When asked if he did not feel remorse for the violence when she was taken, Funato said, "I couldn't control my emotions."
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