Japan executes a man convicted of setting fire that killed 5 at a pachinko parlor in Osaka

TOKYO -- Japan on Friday announced the execution of a man convicted of killing five people after setting fire to an Osaka pachinko parlor in 2009, a first execution by Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi 's government as the country faces growing calls for more transparency and the abolition of capital punishment.The Justice Ministry said Sunao Takami, 58, was hanged to death earlier Friday.Takami in 2009 set fire to the crowded pachinko parlor in Osaka by spreading gasoline and throwing a lit match, engulfing the building, killing five and injuring 10 others, Justice Minister Hiroshi Hiraguchi said.“It caused extremely serious outcomes and dealt a major shock and fear to the society,” he told a news conference, adding “the victims whose lives were taken away must have felt unimaginable pain and fear, and those who suffered injuries ... were forced to live with long-term effects.”“As justice minister, I have ordered an execution after careful and thorough considerations,” he said. Takami was convicted of murder, attempted murder and arson and sentenced to death in a 2011 Osaka District Court ruling. His appeals up to the top court were rejected in 2016 by a Supreme Court decision upholdi...