TOYAMA--The Toyama District Court handed an eight-year prison sentence to a man who repeatedly sexually assaulted his biological teenage daughter at their home and claimed that she was “willing.”

Presiding Judge Toshiaki Umezawa condemned the suspect, Koji Daimon, 54, for committing a “habitual, highly malicious crime that ignored the victim’s dignity.”

Daimon, unemployed, was found guilty of “quasi-rape.”

He had pleaded not guilty, arguing that his daughter was never in a state of “inability to resist,” a requirement for a quasi-rape conviction.

Daimon also argued during his trial that she “didn’t seem reluctant.”

Following her father’s arrest, the victim, Riho Fukuyama, now 25, publicly revealed her name at a news conference held in March 2024 when she disclosed details of the nightmare situation.

According to the court’s ruling, Daimon began sexually abusing Fukuyama when she was a junior high school student.

In August 2016, when she was 16, Daimon sexually assaulted her at their home in Kurobe, Toyama Prefecture.

By the time Fukuyama was in the second year of high school, Daimon had sexually assaulted her at least eight times over a period of about three years, typically on nights when her mother was not home, according to the ruling.

Although Fukuyama resisted his attacks and sought help from those around her, the situation remained unchanged, the ruling said.

The court rejected Daimon’s defense that his daughter could have resisted his advances but chose not to.

“She had been psychologically cornered, forced to bear the abnormal circumstances alone, which left her mentally overwhelmed and drained of the will to resist,” the court said.

The court also noted that Fukuyama’s dependence on Daimon’s financial support added to the difficulty for her to fight back.

In explaining the sentence, the court criticized Daimon for exploiting the secrecy of home life to conceal his crimes.

It also castigated him for repeatedly making absurd claims in court that insulted Fukuyama, including asserting that she had been “willing” at times.

PAINFUL TRIAL

Following the verdict, Fukuyama expressed relief at a news conference on Oct. 21 in Toyama.

“The court understood my feelings,” she said. “I’m glad I pursued the criminal charge. Society and judges recognized that my father was to blame.”

She recalled vomiting while preparing to give testimony in March because it brought back traumatic memories.

Fukuyama also described the trial as more painful than expected, especially when she was questioned by Daimon’s lawyer about whether she could have resisted more.

“I understand it’s part of a fair trial, but the questions were so heartbreaking,” she said.

Still, she said the court’s ruling made her feel that her efforts were “worthwhile.”

Fukuyama credited her husband’s support and thanked professionals, such as staff from a child guidance center and a gynecologist, who testified on her behalf.

Despite the challenges, she encourages other victims of sex crimes to speak out.

“It takes courage, but there are adults who will help. If you’re considering filing a criminal lawsuit, please be brave,” she said.

‘TRULY COURAGEOUS ACT’

Makiko Okuyama, a pediatric psychiatrist and former president of the Japanese Society for Prevention of Child Abuse and Neglect, a general incorporated association, commented on the case.

“It can be said that the guilty verdict was made possible because the child guidance center conducted hearings and the gynecologist performed medical examinations,” she said.

Okuyama said many children become victims of sexual abuse within families, but the cases are often not revealed.

“We must ensure that victims can disclose abuse to child guidance centers as early as possible. To achieve this, rights education from a young age is essential,” she said.

Hiroko Goto, a criminal law scholar and vice president of Chiba University, said Fukuyama’s speaking out about her ordeal was “a truly courageous act.”

“I believe this is the first case of a victim publicly revealing her name while accusing her father,” Goto said.

“We must build a society where victims can safely reveal their faces and names, as well as naming perpetrators. To achieve this, we must make society more supportive of victims,” she said.

(This article was compiled from reports written by Michiyo Sato and Maki Okubo, senior staff writer.)