Editor's note: This is the last in a four-part series on letters that Iwao Hakamada wrote while on death row. 

About a decade after cursing God, Iwao Hakamada was baptized Catholic at the Tokyo Detention House on Dec. 24, 1984.

“Since I have been given the Christian name Paul, I am keenly feeling that I should be aware of the greatness of Paul.” (June 1985)

Hakamada’s 91-year-old sister, Hideko, recalled that her brother had not previously shown a particular interest in religion.

In fact, back in 1973, he bemoaned his situation and vented his strong frustration and anger toward the Creator.

“What crimes have I committed to deserve where I am in now? For what and for how long do I have to be incarcerated or do I have to die in prison? … What a cold treatment. If this is the will of God, no one needs such a God.” (November 1973)

He even wrote, “I sometimes cannot help resenting God.”

After his death sentence for a quadruple murder in 1966 was finalized by the Supreme Court in 1980, Hakamada apparently turned to religion for help.

His letter to a lawyer in March 1982 read: “Jesus Christ teaches, ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ But I am being reminded of the difficulty of doing so every day since my neighbors include big enemies, as well.”

Hakamada started correspondences with Catholic followers after he received sweets on Christmas Day in 1982.

When he told Hideko he would be baptized Catholic, she embraced the idea.

“My brother lost sight of how to keep going after his death sentence was finalized despite his hopes for receiving justice,” she recalled thinking.

In a letter to Hideko, Hakamada said he meets a Catholic priest once or twice a month for counseling.

The death row inmate continued to write frequently. He kept a journal about his daily life in prison, touching on various topics, including his petition for a new trial, Christianity and boxing.

But something odd began to creep into his letters.

“Today, the devil’s agents are clinging to my cell day and night, throwing in misfortune on me.” (April 1987)

His accounts of the devil’s “existence” became more detailed and concrete.

“My battle against the devil has entered a new phase lately. The warm radio waves and itchy radio waves, which were both thought to be the greatest weapons in the past, have now tapered off. Instead, a new offensive is taking their place, using techniques that have been narrowed down to three. First, it applies radio waves to the area above my left and right ears. When under this attack from the front, the core of my head spins.” (July 1988)

Hakamada was moved to a cell for the condemned after his death sentence was finalized. Around this time, during Hideko’s visit to the prison, Hakamada complained about “an existence emitting electricity” and “emitting radio waves causing itchiness and pain.”

His writing appeared aberrant, both in content and style. In conventional Japanese writing style, characters are written from top to down in columns that go from right to left.

Hakamada started writing from the opposite side in some letters. And he made numerous grammatical errors.

Naoshi Nakajima, a psychiatrist who heads Tama Aoba Psychiatric Hospital on the outskirts of Tokyo, said Hakamada was suffering from institutional psychosis, or mental illness resulting from prolonged confinement in prison.

Headaches, dizziness and nausea are typical symptoms. Some develop feelings of paranoia.

Nakajima, who has written books on mental health and the criminal justice system, produced Hakamada’s diagnosis in 2008 for the court at the request of Hakamada’s defense lawyers.

The doctor interviewed Hakamada at the Tokyo Detention House for evaluation. Before he reached his diagnosis, he also listened to what Hideko had to say about her brother’s condition and examined many of Hakamada’s letters.

Nakajima said many inmates experiencing mental health issues usually recover in a short period of time. But Hakamada’s case is “extremely rare” since his symptoms are “severe and chronic.”

He had been incarcerated for nearly half a century for a crime he insisted he did not commit. And it has long been argued that physical evidence against him was fabricated.

“As many countries have moved to abolish the death penalty, I believe there are few reports in the world about the mental illnesses of death row inmates stemming from many years of imprisonment,” Nakajima said.

In a letter with a June 21, 1995, postmark, Hakamada asked Hideko to send a shirt and other items to the prison. But what was written on the section for the sender did not make sense.

He got the date mixed up and used a fictitious year. It was the last letter that has remained with Hideko.

After that, his correspondence became infrequent, and he just asked for goods.

In March 2008, the Supreme Court denied his first request for a new trial, 27 years after it was originally made.

But the defense team reached a breakthrough after his second motion for a retrial was filed.

Prosecutors disclosed color photographs of their critical evidence against Hakamada--the bloodstained clothes from the miso tank--to the defense for the first time in 2010.

Defense lawyers had insisted on disclosure of the evidence since their first bid for a retrial, only to meet with resistance from prosecutors.

But the prosecution, prompted by the Shizuoka District Court, finally agreed to do so.

The photos paved the way for the defense to conduct scientific studies concerning the color of the bloodstains in the clothing.

The district court ruled there was reasonable doubt about the credibility of the key evidence, leading to its decision in 2014 to allow for a new trial.

The court also made a landmark decision to release Hakamada before the retrial, recognizing his “advanced age” and his “poor mental condition.”

Hakamada was 78 at that time.

Since his release, Hakamada has lived with Hideko at their apartment in Hamamatsu, Shizuoka Prefecture.

But he had to wait nine more years until the retrial finally opened on Oct. 27, 2023, at the Shizuoka District Court.

Hakamada has been exempt from appearing in court due to his mental condition.

Koshi Kunii, the presiding judge of the court, explained that Hakamada is not capable of understanding his position in the trial, and that it is also difficult for him to understand the right to remain silent.

The court is expected to hand down a ruling by the year-end.

Hakamada was 30 when he posted his first letter from behind bars. He is now 88.

“He does not have much time left,” said Hideko, adding that she has had only one wish over the past nearly five decades.

“My brother has maintained his innocence all along,” she said in a strong tone. “I want to get him cleared soon.”

(This article was written by Kyota Tanaka and Yuri Murakami.)

For details of Hakamada's trial and letters, check out https://www.asahi.com/special/hakamadaletters/en/