He’s the world’s longest-serving death row inmate. A court just declared him innocent

By Lex Harvey, Yumi Asada and Hanako Montgomery, CNN
5 minute read
Updated 5:09 AM EDT, Thu September 26, 2024


Hakamata was arrested on August 18, 1966, when he was 30 years old. Hakamata Defense Lawyers

Tokyo (CNN) — A pair of blood-spattered trousers in a miso tank and an allegedly forced confession helped send Iwao Hakamata to death row in the 1960s.

Now, more than five decades later, the world’s longest-serving death row prisoner has been declared innocent, according to public broadcaster NHK.

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