After 46 years on death row, Japanese man finally cleared at... 89 years old

Steph Deschamps / March 28, 2025

A Japanese death row inmate who spent 46 years on death row has won the equivalent of 1.2 million euros in damages from the Japanese state, a Japanese court spokesman said on Tuesday.

This amount is the maximum possible under Japan's law on compensation for defendants who are finally found innocent, which provides for compensation of up to 12,500 yen (77 euros) for each day spent in detention.

After a long legal battle led mainly by his sister, Iwao Hakamada, now aged 89, was declared innocent last September of the quadruple murder for which he had been sentenced to death in 1968. He spent more than five decades in prison, including 46 years on death row, before being released in September.

“The plaintiff will be awarded 217,362,500 yen”, the equivalent of 1.2 million euros, said a court spokesman, commenting on the Shizuoka District Court's decision dated Monday.

When his sentence was reviewed, a judge found that evidence against Mr. Hakamada had been “fabricated”, and ruled that the interrogations he underwent were “inhumane” and aimed at inflicting “physical and mental pain” as well as obtaining “statements under duress”.

Iwao Hakamada, severely weakened by his imprisonment, is the fifth death row inmate to benefit from a retrial in Japan's post-war history. The four previous cases also resulted in verdicts of innocence.

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After 46 years on death row, Japanese man finally cleared at... 89 years old

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