Apparently perplexed but yet thrilled to find himself in the spotlight, Iwao Hakamada, formerly the world's longest-serving death-row inmate, appeared for the first time in public Monday since being hospitalized after his release.
Supporters cheered Hakamada at an event in Tokyo to raise his spirits as he awaits the Tokyo High Court's decision on an appeal by the prosecution to deny him a retrial for the 1966 quadruple-murder case he was convicted for.
After nearly five decades of imprisonment, the 78-year-old was freed last month after the Shizuoka District Court ordered a retrial. The prosecutors immediately appealed.