A Japanese man who spent over 40 years on death row for a crime he did not commit has been granted $1.4 million in compensation, according to officials.
Iwao Hakamada, an 89-year-old former boxer, was wrongly convicted of a 1966 quadruple murder and endured decades in prison under the constant threat of execution.
The compensation amounts to approximately 12,500 yen ($83) for each day he was unjustly detained.
A decision issued by the Shizuoka District Court on Monday awarded Hakamada a total of 217,362,500 yen.
The same court had previously declared him innocent in September, ruling that police had fabricated evidence to secure his conviction.
Hakamada had initially confessed to the crime but later retracted his statement, saying he was subjected to relentless and coercive interrogations.
His legal team and supporters, including his sister, fought for years to prove his innocence.
Although the compensation marks the highest amount ever granted for a wrongful conviction in Japan, Hakamada’s lawyers argue that no financial settlement can fully make up for the suffering he endured.
His prolonged imprisonment left lasting effects on his mental health, with his legal representatives describing him as living in a state of psychological distress.
Hakamada is the fifth death row inmate in Japan’s post-war history to be granted a retrial, and like the previous four, he was ultimately acquitted.