PHOENIX, AZ — A jury has discovered Yui Inoue responsible of murdering her two kids with a meat cleaver in what prosecutors described as a revenge assault in opposition to her estranged husband.
The Maricopa County jury convicted Inoue, 42, on February 24 of two counts of first-degree homicide, two counts of kid abuse, and one rely of disorderly conduct within the brutal 2021 killings of 7-year-old Kai Inoue and 9-year-old Mia Inoue. She is about to be sentenced on March 21 and faces the potential of life in jail.
A Disturbing Crime
The case started on Might 15, 2021, when Tempe Police responded to a horrific scene at Inoue’s residence on South Mills Avenue. Hours earlier, round 12:30 a.m. on Might 14, officers had been known as to the house for a home disturbance between Inoue and her husband. Police separated the couple, decided that the kids have been alive and unhurt on the time, and left the scene.
The following morning, Inoue reportedly flagged down a police officer at a substation and claimed she was listening to voices telling her to kill her kids. Officers rushed to her residence, the place they found the our bodies of Kai and Mia hidden below packing containers and a blanket.
Tempe Police Sgt. Steven Carbajal described the crime scene as traumatic, saying each kids had sustained important accidents, together with a number of deep lacerations and amputations, per a violent wrestle. Investigators later discovered that Inoue had introduced the bloodied cleaver together with her within the automotive when she went to the police station.
Motive: Revenge In opposition to Estranged Husband
In accordance with prosecutors, Inoue killed her kids out of rage after her husband known as the police the night time earlier than the murders. The couple was within the technique of divorcing, and Inoue wished cash from him to maneuver to Japan.
Prosecutor Shaylee Beasley acknowledged throughout closing arguments that Inoue “tried to decapitate two souls.” She added that the kids have been asleep of their beds when Inoue entered the room with the cleaver and attacked them.
“This was a deliberate, brutal act,” prosecutors argued. “She needed to assume. She needed to act. And there’s nothing unclear or speculative about any of that.”
The Protection: “Too Small to Kill” Argument
Inoue’s protection didn’t dispute that the kids have been murdered, however they argued she lacked the bodily energy to commit such a violent assault.
Protection attorneys pointed to the health worker’s report, which described the extent of power used as just like that of a guillotine. They claimed Inoue, a small and barely constructed lady, wouldn’t have been able to inflicting such excessive accidents.
Regardless of this argument, the jury in the end sided with the prosecution, concluding that Inoue had deliberate and carried out the assault in a match of revenge-driven rage.
Sentencing Awaited
Along with her conviction secured, Inoue now awaits sentencing on March 21. She faces a compulsory life sentence, both with or with out parole eligibility, for the brutal murders of her personal kids.
