Kyota Hattori, the 26-year-old infamous Joker assailant, has been sentenced to 23 years in prison by the Tokyo District Court’s Tachikawa branch.
Kyota Hattori was dressed as the DC comic book villain, the Joker, when he committed attempted murder and started a fire on a train on a Halloween night in October 2021. He was subsequently found guilty of these charges.
Dressed in a purple suit, green shirt, and a tie reminiscent of the Joker character, Hattori boarded a Keio Line train bound for Shinjuku Station, earning him the moniker “Joker assailant.”
Hattori stabbed a passenger in his 70s and attempted to set fire to the train, targeting a total of 12 innocent passengers. While the stabbed man suffered critical injuries, he fortunately survived, and miraculously, no fatalities occurred during the attack.
During the trial, Hattori admitted to the stabbing and the act of igniting the train carriage, but he vehemently denied the intention to commit murder when starting the fire.
He contested the indictment, arguing that the arson couldn’t be considered attempted murder.
Hattori’s fascination with the Joker character from the Batman films came to light when he was arrested. He expressed admiration for the fictional character and revealed his disturbing desire to kill multiple people, seeking the death penalty for his actions.
The police reported that Hattori planned to execute his violent act on a crowded Halloween day aboard an express train to ensure his victims had limited means of escape.
Additionally, he confessed to having spread lighter fluid throughout the train, exacerbating the danger and fear in the confined space.
Eyewitnesses from the train recall the chilling scene as Hattori began spreading the flammable liquid, displaying a mechanical detachment devoid of emotion.
“He held a knife and started spreading liquid. He was committing this act without showing any emotion, just mechanically. I think that brought fear to everyone,” said one of the witnesses present in the carriage at the time.
