Japanese man to get $1.5 million for 50 years in death row cell

A court in Japan has ordered the government to pay $1.44 million in compensation to 89-year-old Iwao Hakamata, who spent 47 years on death row before being acquitted, Kyodo reports.

Hakamata worked at a miso paste factory when he was arrested in 1966, accused of robbing and murdering his employer, the employer's wife, and their two children. During interrogation, he confessed to the crime, but later told the court that his confession had been extracted under torture. Two years later, he was sentenced to death.

Hakamata was placed in a death row cell, awaiting execution, and repeatedly filed appeals. In 2014, the case was reopened for review. The court confirmed that Hakamata's DNA did not match the genetic material found in blood at the crime scene.

After the new evidence was deemed authentic, Hakamata was released. However, the Tokyo High Court ordered a retrial of his case. In fall 2024, the court fully acquitted him, ruling that three pieces of evidence had been falsified to frame him.

In 2011, Hakamata was listed in the Guinness World Records as the longest-serving death row inmate awaiting execution. According to his lawyers, the compensation he was awarded is likely the highest ever paid in Japan.