The convicted rapist and killer Joji Obara faces many years in prison, despite being acquitted of the rape and killing of the young British bar hostess, Lucie Blackman, Japanese lawyers said yesterday.

Obara was cleared of the abduction, rape, killing and dismemberment of Ms Blackman, but received a life sentence for eight other counts of rape and one of rape resulting in death. Despite his appeal against the convictions, and the judge’s ruling that most of the time he has spent in custody during his trial be deducted from his sentence, he is likely to spend at least 15 years in prison, a member of his legal team told The Times.

“I believe that the higher court will not reduce the sentence and that Obara will not be released on parole,” the legal representative said. “Under these circumstances, I don’t expect him to get out in 10, or even 15 years’ time. These days lifetime imprisonment has come to mean life without a fixed term.”

The Chief Judge in the Tokyo District Court, Tsutomu Tochigi, acquitted Obara of killing Ms Blackman, whose body was found buried in a seaside cave close to Obara’s home seven months after she went out for the day with him.

Justice Tochigi said that, despite circumstantial evidence, there was no direct proof, such as DNA evidence, linking Obara to Ms Blackman’s death.

But the text of the judgment reveals the court’s revulsion for Obara and the crimes of which he was convicted — words that will be carefully weighed by any future parole board.

“You treated these women as sexual objects to satisfy your lust,” the judge told Obara. “Your behaviour is not healthy sexual behaviour, but a filthy crime. Furthermore, you used lethal drugs such as chloroform that can cause death due to disordering of the liver function. One opinion might be that these women were careless, but I believe that they could not anticipate your deviant behaviour . . . You repeated the same routine over eight years, treating their lives and their bodies carelessly.

“It is rooted in your self-cen-tred attitude based on your perverted sexual taste, and deserves the most severe reproach.”

Ms Blackman’s family expressed outrage at Obara’s acquittal on the charges relating to her death, and disgust at the Tokyo prosecutors for failing to construct a water-tight case against him.

“I’m afraid to say the lack of justice for us today has been the failure of the prosecution team to develop the case adequately,” said her father, Tim, who attended the hearing with Lucie’s younger sister, Sophie. “Lucie has been robbed of her justice. The prosecutors should strongly consider an appeal,” he added.

In Japan, prosecutors and the defence are allowed to appeal against an acquittal, so it is possible that the case will continue for several more years.

Ms Blackman’s mother, Jane Steare, who remained at her home in Sevenoaks, Kent, during the trial, said in a statement: “My worst fears have come true. As for my darling Lucie, I miss you so much. This aching void in my heart feels like it will never go away, but I truly believe that one day we will hug each other again. Your Mummy will never give up hope of finding justice and the truth.”

Mrs Steare, who divorced Mr Blackman before their daughter’s disappearance, has denounced her former husband for accepting 100 million yen (£422,000) from “a friend” of Obara and for signing a statement questioning some of the evidence against him.

But yesterday’s ruling made it clear that the judge was moved to acquit Obara, not because of the payment, but because of the lack of a “smoking gun” linking him directly to Ms Blackman’s death.

“The defendant is recognised as being involved in the damage and abandonment of Lucie’s dead body in some form,” Justice Tochigi said. “The problem is how the defendant was involved in the death of Lucie.”

Under Japanese law prisoners serving a life sentence are eligible for parole after ten years. But under the terms of yesterday’s ruling, Obara could technically apply for parole in fewer than six years. He has been in custody since his arrest in October 2000, and 1,600 days of that term are to count as part of his sentence.

Different rules

— Japan does not have jury trials. But this will change from 2009 when a panel of six members of the public will sit with three judges to hear cases

— Unlike common law countries such as Britain and the US, Japan does not have a strict rule of evidence, so judges have very broad discretion on what is admissible

— A spokesman for the Japanese Embassy in London said the common law difference was not vital in the Obara case, where the judge found there was insufficient direct evidence linking the accused to the killing of Lucie Blackman. Such a verdict could also have been reached by a jury in Britain

Source: Shigenori Matsui, professor of law at the University of British Columbia

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