Hakamata to Sue Japanese, Prefectural Governments in Aug.

   Shizuoka, April 3 (Jiji Press)--Lawyers for Iwao Hakamata, who was acquitted in a retrial for the 1966 murder of a family in Shizuoka Prefecture, plan to file a damages suit against the central and prefectural governments in August.
   They aim to take the legal action on Aug. 18, the date when Hakamata was arrested in 1966.
   Last month, Shizuoka District Court decided to grant Hakamata some 217 million yen under the criminal compensation law for his unjust detention for over 47 years.
   Hideyo Ogawa, secretary-general of the defense team, told reporters that criminal compensation is "not enough" for the damage caused by the unjust detention. "We'll seek damages and clarify the cause of the false charge," he added.
   Hakamata was arrested by the Shizuoka prefectural police on suspicion of robbery and murder and his death sentence once became final in 1980. He was detained for 47 years and seven months until his release in March 2014 after the district court granted him a retrial.

(2025/04/03-16:37)