A court has granted a retrial to an 87-year-old Japanese man who has served the world’s longest sentence of death for killing four family members.
On the 13th (local time), the British BBC reported that the Supreme Court of Japan accepted the request for a retrial of Iwao Hakamada, who was sentenced to death for the murder of four family members of his boss, on the 13th. The Supreme Court of Japan is a judicial body equivalent to the Supreme Court of Korea.
Back in 1966, when the incident occurred, Iwao was a former professional boxer working at a soy sauce factory in Shizuoka, west of Tokyo. Police arrested Iwao after four family members of the company’s managing director were stabbed to death. After more than 20 days of police assault and coercive investigation, he reluctantly made a false confession. Although he recanted his confession in court, the court sentenced him to death in 1968.
After serving 45 years in prison, Iwao was temporarily released on humanitarian grounds in 2014, before requesting a retrial. In the district court, the ‘possibility of manipulation of evidence’ was recognized and a retrial was ruled, but it was later overturned in the high court. Then, this time, he received a retrial verdict from the Supreme Court again.
Hideko Hikamada (90), her older sister who has been fighting for decades to prove her brother’s innocence, said, “I’ve been waiting for 57 years to prove my brother’s innocence. “Today is finally the day,” she said, “a load off her shoulders.”
Japan is one of the advanced democracies outside of the United States that still retains the death penalty. The Japanese branch of Amnesty International, an international human rights organization, welcomed the retrial decision, calling it a “long-term opportunity to realize justice.”
The issue of the retrial is whether the DNA of the blood found on the clothes the killer was supposed to be wearing matches Iwao’s. His lawyers said, “There will be no match. (Even if they match) the evidence is fabricated.”
Meanwhile, Motoji Kobayashi, president of the Japan Bar Association, who assisted Iwao’s trial, said, “We will strive to treat Mr. Hakamadi, an elderly man suffering from mental and physical problems due to being physically restrained for a long time.”
Source: Donga
Mark Jones is a world traveler and journalist for News Rebeat. With a curious mind and a love of adventure, Mark brings a unique perspective to the latest global events and provides in-depth and thought-provoking coverage of the world at large.