The man accused of murdering British woman Lindsay Hawker near Tokyo four years ago admitted he was responsible for her death but denied intending to kill her.
During tearful testimony at the first hearing in his trial at Chiba district court, Tatsuya Ichihashi also admitted raping Hawker at his apartment in Ichikawa, a suburban town in Chiba prefecture, east of Tokyo, in late March 2007 and abandoning her body.
Ichihashi, 32, said he was responsible for Hawker's death, but claimed she had died accidentally while he tried to stifle her cries for help.
"I didn't intend to kill her, but I am responsible for her death," he told the court. Hawker's parents and two sisters sat just metres away. "I was the one who scared her and left her dead. I am very sorry for what I did."
Hawker's father, Bill, and mother, Julia, sat impassively as Ichihashi vowed to tell the court the truth about the events that led up to their daughter's death.
Japanese police launched a nationwide manhunt after her body was found buried in a bathtub filled with sand on the balcony of Ichihashi's apartment.
Hawker, 22, from Brandon, near Coventry, had been beaten and strangled, and her hands and legs bound with plastic gardening cord. On Monday, defence lawyers said Ichihashi had tried to revive Hawker after suffocating her by accident to prevent her from shouting for help.
Dressed in a black shirt, faded black jeans, his unkempt hair falling over his eyes, a pale-looking Ichihashi fought back tears as he told the court: "Yes, I raped her. Yes, I agree that Lindsay died because of my actions. But I did not mean to kill her.
"Only Lindsay and I know what really happened that day, but she can no longer speak for herself because of me. It is my responsibility to tell the truth throughout this trial."
Ichihashi evaded police when they arrived at his apartment to question him about Hawker's disappearance. He spent more than two and half years on the run, evading arrest by using false names and undergoing several rounds of plastic surgery.
The court heard how Ichihashi had persuaded Hawker, who had arrived in Japan the previous year to teach English, to go to his apartment by taxi on 25 March 2007 so he could pay her for a private language lesson she had given him in a cafe earlier that day.
As "victim participants" under Japan's court system, the Hawkers will be permitted to question Ichihashi during his trial. At the court's discretion, they may also give their opinion on sentencing.
"We are here to get justice for Lindsay," Hawker's father, Bill, told reporters. "I can't say much more because the trial is about to start, except to thank the police and everyone who's been involved in this case. Now we just want to get it over and done with. I'm here to get justice for my daughter. It's been a long time coming."
The presiding judge, Masaya Hotta, said the six lay judges and three professional judges will help him arrive at a verdict.
He said the verdict would depend on whether the jurors believe Ichihashi intended to kill Hawker, who had arrived in Japan in October 2006 after graduating with a biology degree from Leeds University.
Bill and Julia Hawker showed no emotion for most of the hearing, which attracted almost 1,000 applications for 60 public seats, and widespread media coverage.
But during the defence's account of the events leading up to Hawker's death, her father occasionally shook his head and her mother wiped away tears. Hawker's sisters, Lisa and Louise, were seated in the public gallery.
Ichihashi, a former horticulture student, evaded several police officers when questioned at the entrance to his apartment about Hawker's disappearance and fled in his socks, dropping a rucksack containing cash.
Despite a reward of 10 million yen for information leading to his arrest and 8,000 reported sightings, Ichihashi evaded police for two years and seven months.
He spent time in 23 of Japan's 47 prefectures, found casual work on construction sites and underwent extensive plastic surgery in an attempt to evade capture.
He was arrested in November 2009 in Osaka while waiting to board a ferry to the southern island of Okinawa. A passenger had contacted port officials after recognising Ichihashi, who was wearing a hat, sunglasses and paper surgical mask.
Ichihashi wrote to the Hawkers while in custody apologising for their daughter's death, but the family dismissed the letter as a ploy to gain a lenient sentence.
Earlier this year he published a book, Until The Arrested, which detailed his two years and seven months as a fugitive. Ichihashi described the book as "a gesture of contrition", adding that he wanted royalties to go to the Hawker family or a charity.
Ichihashi does not discuss his alleged crimes in the book, but recounts his daily quest to evade capture.
He travelled between Aomori in Japan's north to Okinawa, a subtropical island in the far south. He described how he had removed a mole from his face to alter his appearance, before paying for plastic surgery with cash earned during 13 months working on an Osaka construction site.
Prosecutors have yet to enter a sentencing demand. The crimes of which Ichihashi is accused carry the death penalty in Japan, although it is thought he is unlikely to face hanging even if found guilty of murder.
The next hearing will be held on Tuesday. The verdict and sentencing will be given on 21 July.
During tearful testimony at the first hearing in his trial at Chiba district court, Tatsuya Ichihashi also admitted raping Hawker at his apartment in Ichikawa, a suburban town in Chiba prefecture, east of Tokyo, in late March 2007 and abandoning her body.
Ichihashi, 32, said he was responsible for Hawker's death, but claimed she had died accidentally while he tried to stifle her cries for help.
"I didn't intend to kill her, but I am responsible for her death," he told the court. Hawker's parents and two sisters sat just metres away. "I was the one who scared her and left her dead. I am very sorry for what I did."
Hawker's father, Bill, and mother, Julia, sat impassively as Ichihashi vowed to tell the court the truth about the events that led up to their daughter's death.
Japanese police launched a nationwide manhunt after her body was found buried in a bathtub filled with sand on the balcony of Ichihashi's apartment.
Hawker, 22, from Brandon, near Coventry, had been beaten and strangled, and her hands and legs bound with plastic gardening cord. On Monday, defence lawyers said Ichihashi had tried to revive Hawker after suffocating her by accident to prevent her from shouting for help.
Dressed in a black shirt, faded black jeans, his unkempt hair falling over his eyes, a pale-looking Ichihashi fought back tears as he told the court: "Yes, I raped her. Yes, I agree that Lindsay died because of my actions. But I did not mean to kill her.
"Only Lindsay and I know what really happened that day, but she can no longer speak for herself because of me. It is my responsibility to tell the truth throughout this trial."
Ichihashi evaded police when they arrived at his apartment to question him about Hawker's disappearance. He spent more than two and half years on the run, evading arrest by using false names and undergoing several rounds of plastic surgery.
The court heard how Ichihashi had persuaded Hawker, who had arrived in Japan the previous year to teach English, to go to his apartment by taxi on 25 March 2007 so he could pay her for a private language lesson she had given him in a cafe earlier that day.
As "victim participants" under Japan's court system, the Hawkers will be permitted to question Ichihashi during his trial. At the court's discretion, they may also give their opinion on sentencing.
"We are here to get justice for Lindsay," Hawker's father, Bill, told reporters. "I can't say much more because the trial is about to start, except to thank the police and everyone who's been involved in this case. Now we just want to get it over and done with. I'm here to get justice for my daughter. It's been a long time coming."
He said the verdict would depend on whether the jurors believe Ichihashi intended to kill Hawker, who had arrived in Japan in October 2006 after graduating with a biology degree from Leeds University.
Bill and Julia Hawker showed no emotion for most of the hearing, which attracted almost 1,000 applications for 60 public seats, and widespread media coverage.
But during the defence's account of the events leading up to Hawker's death, her father occasionally shook his head and her mother wiped away tears. Hawker's sisters, Lisa and Louise, were seated in the public gallery.
Ichihashi, a former horticulture student, evaded several police officers when questioned at the entrance to his apartment about Hawker's disappearance and fled in his socks, dropping a rucksack containing cash.
Despite a reward of 10 million yen for information leading to his arrest and 8,000 reported sightings, Ichihashi evaded police for two years and seven months.
He spent time in 23 of Japan's 47 prefectures, found casual work on construction sites and underwent extensive plastic surgery in an attempt to evade capture.
He was arrested in November 2009 in Osaka while waiting to board a ferry to the southern island of Okinawa. A passenger had contacted port officials after recognising Ichihashi, who was wearing a hat, sunglasses and paper surgical mask.
Ichihashi wrote to the Hawkers while in custody apologising for their daughter's death, but the family dismissed the letter as a ploy to gain a lenient sentence.
Earlier this year he published a book, Until The Arrested, which detailed his two years and seven months as a fugitive. Ichihashi described the book as "a gesture of contrition", adding that he wanted royalties to go to the Hawker family or a charity.
Ichihashi does not discuss his alleged crimes in the book, but recounts his daily quest to evade capture.
He travelled between Aomori in Japan's north to Okinawa, a subtropical island in the far south. He described how he had removed a mole from his face to alter his appearance, before paying for plastic surgery with cash earned during 13 months working on an Osaka construction site.
Prosecutors have yet to enter a sentencing demand. The crimes of which Ichihashi is accused carry the death penalty in Japan, although it is thought he is unlikely to face hanging even if found guilty of murder.
The next hearing will be held on Tuesday. The verdict and sentencing will be given on 21 July.
