A Japanese inmate sentenced to death, nicknamed the “black widow” after used cyanide to kill her elderly loversdied in a detention center at the age of 78, officials announced Friday.
Chisako Kakehi was sentenced to death for the murder of three men, including her husbandand the attempted murder of another man about a decade ago in a case that gripped Japan.
Her death was confirmed at a hospital on Thursday after she was found lying in her cell at the Osaka detention center, a Justice Ministry official told AFP.
The cause of death has not yet been determined, he added. Japanese media said it could be due to an undisclosed illness.
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Kakehi’s death sentence was upheld in 2021, with Supreme Court Justice Yuko Miyazaki saying she had “used cyanide on the men after they trusted her as a life partner”.
“This is a calculated and cruel crime, based on strong murderous intent,” Miyazaki said.
Kakehi reportedly amassed a billion yen ($9 million at the time) in insurance payouts and inheritance over 10 years, but then lost most of that money due to unsuccessful financial dealings.
She mainly had relationships with elderly or sick men and met some through dating agencies, where she allegedly stipulated that potential partners had to be wealthy and childless.
The poison was found in the bodies of at least two of the men she was involved with and police reportedly found traces of cyanide in the trash at her Kyoto home.
His partners’ deaths were not immediately investigated because police initially determined they died of illness, and no autopsies were performed on most.
Her arrest came only after police discovered that her last husband, Isao Kakehi, 75, had died from cyanide poisoning. Police then began reviewing past cases and discovered a pattern.