'Sugar Baby Riri' Gets Reduced Sentence

NAGOYA, Oct 01 (News On Japan) - In the trial of Mai Watanabe, also known as 'Sugar Baby Riri' or 'Itadakijoshi Riri-chan,' the Nagoya High Court has handed the defendant a sentence of 8 years and 6 months in prison, six months less than the initial trial's verdict, along with a fine.

Watanabe (26) was accused of defrauding three men she met through a matching app, swindling them out of more than 1.55 billion yen. In April this year, she received a first-instance sentence of 9 years in prison and an 8-million-yen fine.

In the appeal trial, where the defense challenged the severity of the sentence, Watanabe expressed remorse, stating, "I feel sorry for taking away the money that the victims worked so hard to earn."

During the ruling session on Monday, Presiding Judge Mihoko Tanabe of the Nagoya High Court pointed out that "even considering the defendant's upbringing and relationship with hosts, there is no room for leniency in the motive for committing the fraud."

However, the court acknowledged that Watanabe "has shown willingness to apologize to the victims," leading to the decision to reduce her sentence by six months to 8 years and 6 months in prison, while maintaining the 8-million-yen fine.

Source: TBS

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