Prosecutors seek 18-month prison term for former Japanese SDF officer accused of breaking into Chinese Embassy

(ECNS) -- Japanese prosecutors on Tuesday sought an 18-month prison term at the trial of a former officer in Japan's Ground Self-Defense Force accused of breaking into the Chinese Embassy in Tokyo with a knife, Kyodo News reported.

On March 24, Kodai Murata, 24, then an active-duty second lieutenant in the Ground Self-Defense Force, allegedly scaled a barbed-wire wall and broke into the Chinese Embassy in Tokyo with a knife. He also allegedly threatened to kill Chinese diplomatic personnel and was later arrested by police.

After his arrest, the Tokyo District Public Prosecutors Office commissioned a psychiatric evaluation, which concluded that Murata was criminally responsible for his actions.

On July 27, prosecutors indicted him on charges including trespassing and threatening embassy staff.