A Dominican man who allegedly murdered a Vietnamese student in the Japanese prefecture of Osaka could serve a sentence of 18 years behind bars if convicted.  

The proposal for the sentence was made at the trial, which started on May 16, for 26-year-old Alberto, a national of the Dominican Republic, according to the Vietnam News Agency (VNA).

Alberto, an unemployed man with no fixed place of residence, was charged after “intentionally attacking and pushing the victim, who was no longer able to resist, into a river.”

On August 2, 2021, Alberto beat and kicked the victim, T.T.A., a Vietnamese man, into the Dotonbori River in the Namba Park area in Osaka, causing the victim’s death on the evening of the same day, according to the indictment.

Three days later, Osaka police arrested Alberto and initiated criminal proceedings against him for murder.

After conducting an autopsy on the recovered body of the victim, police officers handed the corpse over to a Vietnamese pagoda in Hyogo Prefecture’s Kobe City to perform rituals for the deceased at the wish of his family.

The pagoda conducted a funeral for A. on August 12 and his ashes were transported to Vietnam shortly after, according to VNA.

During the trial, Alberto denied the charge and his lawyer argued that the victim was the first to attack and that the defendant only acted out of ‘justifiable self-defense.’

Osaka’s prosecutors, however, pointed out clear evidence that Alberto intentionally assaulted A., who could not resist the attack, and then pushed the exhausted student into the river.

Concluding that Alberto’s acts had resulted in the victim’s death, prosecutors insisted on the 18-year sentence for the defendant.

The incident has caused a wave of anger both in Vietnam and in Vietnamese communities in Japan.

Many say the proposed penalty is not enough.

The court is scheduled to announce its official judgment on the defendant next Monday.

Like us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter to get the latest news about Vietnam!