Iwao Hakamata, who in a rare example is being retried over a 1966 murder case, will be given a verdict on Sept. 26, the Shizuoka District Court said Wednesday, which could see him finally acquitted more than five decades after he was sentenced to death by the same court.
In the last trial session, prosecutors again sought the death penalty for the 88-year-old, saying there is enough evidence to show that Hakamata is the perpetrator, while defense lawyers argued that he is not guilty.
Hideyo Ogawa, one of Hakamata's defense lawyers, said in a news conference after the trial that he talked about how prison life has changed Iwao Hakamata, who is believed to be suffering from Ganser syndrome, a rare dissociative disorder commonly seen in prisoners, and how he is no longer interested in what's happening around him.