Last June, then 2-year-old girl Yuha Ono died of heat stroke after being left alone all day in an apartment in Tonyabadashi, Osaka Prefecture,
The grandmother, 47-year-old Mayumi Ono, and her common-law husband, 52-year-old Takanori Momoda, were arrested on suspicion of neglecting her 2-year-old granddaughter in a playpen that was surrounded by boards and covered on top, not providing any food and water, which consequently led to the young girl’s death.
Defendant Momoda’s first trial was held at the Sakai Branch of the Osaka District Court. The opening statement goes: “Yuha-chan had accidentally swallowed a rubber band, so we built a playpen to limit her actions and restrict her from moving around freely. Even after that, when we were taking care of her, she began to take off her diaper, which was annoying and so we decided to tie her hands and feet. Whenever we go out for long periods of time, we would lock her in the playpen.”
According to previous investigations, the defendants were on an overnight trip to Universal Studios Japan at the time of the incident.
The trial of the grandmother - Mayumi, is scheduled to commence in January of next year.
Source: NHK
