The longest-serving death row inmate in the world has been acquitted by a Japanese court, over 50 years after his murder conviction in 1968.
The Shizuoka District Court determined that 88-year-old Iwao Hakamada was not guilty during a retrial initiated by the former boxer and his advocates a decade earlier.
“The court finds the defendant innocent,” declared Judge Koshi Kunii.
Due to his fragile health, Mr. Hakamada was unable to attend the court proceedings, but his 91-year-old sister, Hideko, who frequently represents him, bowed deeply to the judge multiple times.
Over the years, significant concerns have been raised regarding fabricated evidence and pressured confessions, leading to a critical examination of Japan’s justice system, which detractors argue keeps suspects “hostage”.
Hundreds of people lined up outside the Shizuoka District Court in the morning, hoping to secure a seat for the verdict in a murder case that has captivated the nation.
“For such a long time, we have fought a battle that seems unending,” his sister, Hideko, told reporters in July. “But this time, I trust it will be resolved.”
Iwao Hakamada’s sister Hideko bowed to the judge after the acquittal.
Japan remains one of the few major industrialized democracies, alongside the United States, that maintains capital punishment, a policy supported by a significant portion of the public.
Mr. Hakamada is the fifth death row inmate to be granted a retrial in Japan’s post-war era.
All four prior cases resulted in exoneration.
After spending decades in detention, primarily in solitary confinement, Mr. Hakamada sometimes appears to “live in a world of fantasy,” stated his lead attorney, Hideyo Ogawa.
In 2018, Mr. Hakamada expressed his continuous struggle for acquittal, stating he felt he was “fighting a bout every day.”
“When you believe you cannot win, there is no way to victory,” he remarked.
Outside the courthouse, supporters of Mr. Hakamada waved flags and held banners advocating for a not-guilty verdict.
Iwao Hakamada is the fifth death row inmate to receive a retrial in Japan’s post-war history.
Even after the Supreme Court upheld Mr. Hakamada’s death sentence in 1980, his supporters persistently campaigned for the case to be reopened.
A significant development occurred in 2014 when a retrial was authorized on the basis that the prosecutors may have tampered with evidence, leading to Mr. Hakamada’s release from incarceration.
Protracted legal battles, including resistance from prosecutors, delayed the start of the retrial until last year.
Initially, Mr. Hakamada denied the robbery and murder accusations, but confessed after what he later described as a savage police interrogation involving beatings.
Key evidence in the trial consisted of a pair of blood-stained clothes discovered in a miso tank a year after the 1966 murders, which was used to implicate Mr. Hakamada.
The defense argued that the investigators staged the evidence since the color of the stains was too vivid, while prosecutors claimed their analysis validated the color’s authenticity.
In Japan, death row inmates receive notice of their execution just a few hours in advance.
As of December, 107 prisoners were awaiting the implementation of their death sentences.
Mr. Hakamada’s case exemplifies “one of countless instances of Japan’s so-called ‘hostage justice’ system,” remarked Teppei Kasai, Asia program officer for Human Rights Watch.
“Suspects endure forced confessions due to extended and arbitrary detention,” he stated, adding that “intimidation often occurs during interrogations.”
