Itaya Hiroki allegedly made a 25-year-old woman drink shots of tequila before bringing her to a hotel, a court heard on Monday, March 2
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NEED TO KNOW
- On Monday, March 2, Itaya Hiroki appeared at the Nagoya District Court in relation to the 2023 death of a 25-year-old woman
- Hiroki has been accused of getting the woman drunk with the intention of later having sex with her
- “It is true I encouraged her to drink, but I didn’t have any sexual intent,” Hiroki said in court
A woman in Japan died after allegedly being forced to drink multiple shots of tequila by a man she had just met.
On Monday, March 2, prosecutors at the Nagoya District Court claimed that the 25-year-old woman joined Itaya Hiroki for a drink after he asked a server at the bar in Nagoya's Naka Ward to introduce them, per Japan Today, The Japan News and NHK World Japan.
Hiroki, 44, was a regular at the bar and is accused of having encouraged the woman to drink 32 shots of tequila within 90 minutes of them sitting together on May 7, 2023, the outlets reported, citing an indictment.
Hiroki has been accused of intentionally getting the woman drunk before taking her to a hotel in a taxi with the intention of having sex with her.
"It is true I encouraged her to drink, but I didn’t have any sexual intent,” Hiroki told the court, per Japan Times.
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Prosecutors allege that he ordered the tequila because the woman nodded when asked if she could drink alcohol, NHK World Japan reported.
“You can still drink, right?” he allegedly asked, before encouraging the woman to keep drinking, the prosecution told the court, per Tokyo Reporter.
The woman allegedly refused his invitation to go to a hotel, while Hiroki made sexual advances, including touching her breasts over her clothes during the drinking session, the outlet reported.
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When they later went to the hotel, he allegedly gave up on trying to have sex with her because he realized that she was in a serious condition due to alcohol consumption, per court testimony.
The woman was found collapsed at a hotel in Naka Ward and later confirmed dead, Japan News reported.
She died of hypoxic encephalopathy caused by acute alcohol poisoning on June 21, the outlets note.
Hiroki has denied allegations of indecent assault causing death and kidnapping for indecent purposes amid the ongoing court trial, per Tokyo Reporter.
If you or someone you know has been sexually assaulted, please contact the National Sexual Assault Hotline at 1-800-656-HOPE (4673) or go to rainn.org.
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