Japan's Aum Supreme Truth cult founder Shoko Asahara was sentenced to
      death by the Tokyo District Court on Friday, Feb. 27.
      　
      Asahara, 48, was convicted of all 13 charges over 27 deaths, including the
      1995 Tokyo subway sarin gas attack and another one in 1994 in a
      residential area in the Nagano Prefecture. The two attacks killed 19
      people and left more than 5,000 injured.

      The trial started 10:00 a.m.(0100 GMT) on the Tokyo District Court with
      more than 4,600 people lining outside for the 38 seats in the court.

      All Tokyo broadcasters covered the story live, disregarding the fresh
      outbreak of bird flu and the six-party talks over the nuclear problems on
      the Korean Peninsular.

      Asahara was arrested May, 1995, two months after the Tokyo gas attack. In
      the trial dragging for almost eight years, he kept silent in most of the
      previous hearings and denied all but one charge. The prosecutors demanded
      death penalty in April, 2003.

      More than 180 people were indicted for Aum-related crimes and 11 of them
      have been sentenced to death.
      　
      Source: People's Daily

      http://english.peopledaily.com.cn/200402/27/eng20040227_136023.shtml