Japan's 'black widow' Chisako Kakehi gets death sentence for killing husband and two partners

A 70-year-old Japanese woman, known as the "black widow", has been given death sentence after she was found guilty of murdering her husband and two partners. Black widow is a term derived from the female spider that eats its partner after mating.

Chisako Kakehi was convicted of three counts of murder and one count of attempted murder. The woman has committed all the crimes between 2007 and 2013 by giving the victims – all elderly wealthy men – drinks laced with cyanide.

With the sentencing, Japan's much-discussed case has come to an end, which had gripped the country for years.

The sentencing comes almost a month after prosecutors sought the death penalty for her, describing her crimes as "heinous and serious incidents that are rarely seen".

They even refuted her lawyers' claims that stated that Chisako should not be convicted on the grounds of diminished responsibility after she was diagnosed with early-stage dementia in 2016. A Kyoto court had also found that she was fit to stand trial, The Straits Times reported.

Chisako was arrested in November 2014 and indicted after her fourth partner and husband, Isao, died in December 2013, a month after they got married. She was later indicted in connection with the deaths of the two other men.

It has been reported that Chisako, a native of Fukuoka Prefecture, was romantically involved with a number of men, 10 of whom are known to have died. She earned an inheritance of approximately 1bn yen (£6.88m, $8.84m) but now it has been said that she lost much of her wealth through financial trading.

While sentencing the old woman, presiding judge Akiko Nakagawa said: "It was an extremely malicious and sneaky crime borne out of greed for money."