Miura's lawyer says he has proof client did not commit suicide

Oct 17 12:47 AM US/Eastern

LOS ANGELES, Oct. 16 (AP) - (Kyodo) — Lawyer of Japanese businessman Kazuyoshi Miura, who committed suicide at a police detention facility in Los Angeles, following his arrival from Saipan to face a trial over the fatal shooting of his then wife in 1981, said Thursday he has proof that his client did not kill himself.

Mark Geragos told a press conference that an independent investigation into the case, expected to be completed as early as next week, has led to multiple proof contradicting the Los Angeles Police Department's announcement last week that Miura had hanged himself in his cell at a police detention facility.

Geragos repeatedly emphasized the importance of finding out what really happened to his 61-year-old client, saying the LAPD announcement and related media reports of Miura committing suicide are inaccurate.

Bruce Berline, Miura's lawyer in Saipan who spoke with the client the day before he left Saipan for Los Angeles on Oct. 10, said at the same news conference that he did not notice anything unusual and the explanation that Miura committed suicide does not make sense.

Before the press event, Geragos and Miura's wife met with officials of the Los Angeles county medical examiner's office. They are scheduled to have a meeting with LAPD officials shortly to hear their explanation about Miura's death.

The medical examiner's office earlier said it would announce the cause of death as early as Thursday. But it has postponed the announcement to within two weeks, saying it is awaiting the completion of all tests, including histopathological and toxicological examinations.

An official of the office said there has been no indication showing that Miura's death was not by suicide. The office conducted a postmortem on him last Sunday.

Miura had been held on a murder conspiracy charge over the killing of his then wife Kazumi, who was shot in November 1981 while traveling with him in Los Angeles. She died about a year later due to the injury.

In 1994, Miura was convicted of the crime and sentenced to life in prison by the Tokyo District Court, which said the actual shooter was an unidentified third party. But in 1998, the Tokyo High Court overturned the ruling and in 2003 the Japanese Supreme Court upheld the high court's decision.

Miura was arrested in Saipan in February this year in connection with the murder case. The arrest warrant said Miura allegedly gestured to someone to shoot Kazumi in the head.