Iwao Hakamada (袴田 巖 Hakamada Iwao, born on March 10, 1936) is a former Japanese professional boxer, who was sentenced to death for a June 10, 1966 mass murder. However, he is also suspected to be falsely charged and has not been executed.
On August 18, 1966, Hakamada was arrested for killing four people. On September 11, 1968, the Shizuoka District Court sentenced him to death. The Supreme Court of Japan upheld his death sentence on November 19, 1980. However, it has been suggested that he was falsely charged. The physical evidence was changed from pajamas to clothes[1] and the clothes did not fit him.[2] Although he remains on death row, he has not yet been executed. The Minister of Justice may refuse to sign a death warrant if they personally suspect that the conviction is not secure. (see Sadamichi Hirasawa). As of 2009[update], he has been in prison for 42 years, the longest imprisonment among condemned prisoners in Japan.