Japanese mother calls for real atonement from serial child killer

A photo shows a smiling Ayaka Yamashita, who was murdered in 1997 by a juvenile serial killer in Kobe.

KOBE: Kyoko Yamashita, who lost her daughter in a 1997 murder by a juvenile serial killer in Kobe, called on the killer to seek “real atonement for the rest of his life.”

Thursday marks the 20th anniversary since her then-10-year-old daughter, Ayaka, died after being attacked in Suma Ward, Kobe.