Chapter 134: It's Not Much More Comfortable Than the Death Penalty

After Megure Juzo finished speaking, he ordered someone to handcuff Toda Kyouji.

Just as they were about to take Toda Kyouji away, his hysterical shouting echoed once again:

"I didn't harm that Akikawa Kyousuke!"

"It must be the murderer from the car accident! He just fabricated evidence and got away with it!"

"Shut your mouth!"

Megure Juzo frowned and sternly warned Toda Kyouji.

Toda Kyouji ignored Megure Juzo's warning and turned to glare at Sera Masumi with bloodshot eyes.

"I can see it! You're doubting Akikawa Kyousuke too, aren't you?"

"I'm telling you, your suspicions aren't wrong!"

"That Akikawa is truly a highly dangerous criminal!"

"In the Imperial Theater case, Akikawa Kyousuke intentionally mutilated himself and tampered with the corpse to frame Koichi Nishihara!"

"The same goes for the shootings two days ago. Akikawa Kyousuke injected morphine and naloxone into Ohga Takao's body!"

"And don't forget the car accident case! To get away with it, he broke his hand and fabricated a nonexistent criminal!"

"I said, shut up!"

Megure Juzo slapped Toda Kyouji across the face again, silencing his rant.

Just as they were about to drag him away, Sera Masumi's voice suddenly interrupted:

"You don't even have evidence. Why are you accusing Akikawa of being the murderer in the car accident?"

"Because of my criminal-sensing instincts, cultivated over years in the Organized Crime Countermeasures Bureau!"

"..."

Everyone present fell silent at Toda Kyouji's words.

The earlier fabricated evidence was already scandalous.

Now, after his criminal actions were exposed, Toda Kyouji was claiming to have some extraordinary "instincts."

If his instincts were so good, why would he need so much time to solve cases and arrest criminals every day?

A strong sense of disdain and distrust filled the air.

Suzuki Sonoko couldn't hold back any longer. She pointed at Toda Kyouji and shouted:

"Where do you get the nerve to slander Mr. Akikawa like this?"

"When we came in earlier, we heard you shouting something like, 'Damn it! You really deserve to die!'"

"It's obvious you wanted to kill Mr. Akikawa, so why are you acting like the victim now?"

Mid-sentence, Suzuki Sonoko watched as the police escorted Toda Kyouji away.

Angrily, she stomped her feet in frustration.

"Damn it! How despicable!"

"How can such a terrible cop exist in this world? It's disgusting!"

When she finished venting, she turned to Mouri Ran.

"Ran, can you ask your mom to get him the death penalty?"

Mouri Ran was startled by the suggestion.

"Mom's just a lawyer, not a judge..."

"But I still feel so frustrated that he's being taken away like this."

"Hasn't he already been hit by both Sera and Megure?"

Mouri Ran patted Suzuki Sonoko's shoulder to console her.

For now, the case had reached its conclusion.

Mouri Ran and the others began walking toward the exit of the movie exhibition.

Although the event was far from over, no one was in the mood to continue browsing after what had happened.

Suzuki Sonoko still felt deeply wronged on behalf of Akikawa Kyousuke.

Mouri Ran tried to comfort her friend.

"But I think Officer Toda's punishment will definitely be severe. I'll ask Miss Kuriyama for you."

"Yes, yes! Ask her quickly! I can't wait to hear how harsh the sentence for that bastard will be!"

Suzuki Sonoko urged.

Mouri Ran took out her phone and called Kuriyama Midori, her mother's secretary and former student.

Soon, Kuriyama Midori's voice came through the line:

"Hello, Ran. Why are you calling me all of a sudden today?"

"Um… Miss Kuriyama, are you busy right now?"

"I'm fine. What's up, Ran?"

"I'd like to consult you about something..."

Mouri Ran began explaining everything that had happened that day to Kuriyama Midori.

However, she deliberately withheld Akikawa Kyousuke's name, only mentioning Toda Kyouji.

On the other end of the line, Kuriyama Midori was clearly shocked after hearing the story.

Not just her—her teacher, Eri Kisaki, had never encountered such a corrupt police officer before either.

The sound of pages flipping echoed faintly through the phone.

A moment later, after Mouri Ran put the call on speakerphone, Kuriyama Midori's voice returned:

"Ran, if everything you said is true…"

"Then Officer Toda is suspected of multiple crimes, including coercing confessions, fabricating evidence, abuse of power, filing false reports, incitement to commit crimes, intentional injury, and attempted murder."

"Under Japanese criminal law, public officials who use their position to extract confessions can face fixed-term imprisonment of no less than one year and no more than ten years."

"Fabricating evidence is punishable by imprisonment of no less than three months and no more than five years."

"Abuse of power carries a maximum penalty of two years in prison."

"Filing false reports can result in imprisonment of no less than one year and no more than ten years."

"Inciting a detainee to attack a police officer is treated as incitement to commit a crime, which is penalized equally to the principal offense."

"Because he attacked the detainee under the pretext of self-defense, he is suspected of intentional injury, which can carry a prison sentence of up to fifteen years."

"As for the final charge of attempted murder, Japanese law imposes the same penalties as for murder: death, life imprisonment, or a minimum of five years in prison. However, sentences for attempted murder can be reduced."

"Taking everything into account, the death penalty is unlikely, and life imprisonment without parole is also improbable."

"But the sentence will likely be no less than fifteen years."

"Eh~ Only fifteen years..."

Suzuki Sonoko sighed regretfully after hearing Kuriyama Midori's explanation.

It still felt like too light a sentence to her.

"As long as Officer Toda didn't kill anyone, criminal law won't be excessively harsh."

Kuriyama Midori chuckled lightly on the other end of the phone.

"Miss Kuriyama, why are you laughing? Isn't this a bad thing?"

Suzuki Sonoko asked, confused.

"Miss Suzuki, you can't think of it that way."

"Although the sentence isn't long, the additional consequences he'll face will be far more torturous than simply going to prison."

"First of all, you mentioned Officer Toda is already over forty years old. By the time he gets out of prison, he'll be nearly sixty."

"Under such circumstances, life will be extremely difficult for someone who has lost all social credit due to his crimes."

"Second, even though you said Officer Toda is a complete scumbag, I believe he still takes pride in his identity as a criminal investigator."

"What he did effectively destroys his career and nullifies all his past accomplishments."

"Going from a detective who deals with ruthless criminals to a convict attempting murder—this drastic fall is enough to drive someone insane."

"And finally..."

"When he goes to prison, he'll undoubtedly encounter many inmates he once 'looked after.'

"Not to mention, he was a criminal investigator in the Organized Crime Countermeasures Bureau, dealing with all kinds of vicious criminals."

"If he enters prison like this, I'm afraid..."

After a brief pause, Kuriyama Midori concluded:

"It won't be much more comfortable than the death penalty."

(End of Chapter)