Iwao Hakamada

Iwao Hakamada
Hakamada in 2022
Born (1936-03-10) 10 March 1936 (age 88)
Yūtō, Shizuoka, Japan
Statistics
Weight(s)Featherweight
Boxing record[1]
Total fights29
Wins16
Wins by KO1
Losses11
Draws2

Iwao Hakamada (Japanese: 袴田 巖, Hepburn: Hakamada Iwao, born 10 March 1936) is a Japanese former professional boxer who was sentenced to death on 11 September 1968 for a 1966 mass murder that became known as the Hakamada Incident.[2] In March 2011, Guinness World Records certified Hakamada as the world's longest-held death row inmate.[3]

In March 2014, he was granted a retrial and an immediate release when the Shizuoka District Court found there was reason to believe evidence against him had been falsified.[4] In September 2024, Hakamada was acquitted in a retrial by the Shizuoka District Court.[5] Hakamada's innocence was confirmed in October 2024, when the prosecution waived its right to appeal.[6]

  1. ^ "Boxing record for Iwao Hakamada". BoxRec.
  2. ^ "Japan: Retrial ruling is step towards justice for world's 'longest-serving' death row prisoner". Amnesty International. 13 March 2023. Retrieved 22 February 2024.
  3. ^ Howie, Michael (13 March 2023). "World's longest-serving death row prisoner granted retrial". Evening Standard. Retrieved 22 February 2024.
  4. ^ Howie, Michael (13 March 2023). "World's longest-serving death row prisoner granted retrial". Evening Standard. Retrieved 22 February 2024.
  5. ^ "Hakamada ruled not guilty". NHK WORLD-JAPAN. 26 September 2024. Retrieved 25 September 2024.
  6. ^ "袴田巌さん無罪確定 検察が控訴権利を放棄 逮捕から58年". NHK NEWS WEB (in Japanese). 9 October 2024. Retrieved 9 October 2024.