Japan's 'Black Widow' Who Killed Lovers Awarded Death

A Japanese court has sentenced Chisako Kakei to death because she has murdered four men. She is being called as the ‘Black Widow’ because she tricked two lovers and her husband into drinking cyanide, thereby killing them. Their deaths ensured Kakei was left with millions in insurance payouts and inheritance.

Kakei killed the men after they made her the beneficiary of life insurance policies. Her modus operandi is to meet men through dating agencies. She asks for men who are wealthy and childless

Kakei was first arrested in November 2014. She was indicted the following month on the charge of killing her husband, who died at the couple’s home in Muko, Kyoto Prefecture, in December 2013. The death occurred a month after their marriage.

The poison was found in the bodies of at least two men she was involved with. The police found traces of the poison at Kakei's home in Kyoto. She kept books about administering drugs and material for administering them. Her trial began in June, at which time she did not speak. But later, she admitted to killing her fourth husband in 2013.

"I killed him... because he gave other women tens of millions of yen, but did not give me even a penny,”  she said.

She also said that she was ready to be hanged.

"Even if I were executed tomorrow, I would die smiling,” Kakei said.

The 'Black Widow' has been diagnosed with mild dementia. A doctor has said she has trouble remembering events right after her arrest. However, since it is a mild case, she can be held legally responsible.

Kakei first married at the age of 24. She launched a fabric printing company in Osaka with her first husband, but the company went bankrupt after his death.

Her trial was the second longest of its kind, with 135 days spent on examining the case.

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Picture Credit: Guardian