Japan executes pachinko parlour arsonist

Japan carried out an execution on Friday, August 21, putting Sunao Takami to death for a deadly arson attack on a pachinko parlor in 2009. Takami had set fire to the establishment, resulting in the deaths of four customers and one employee.

This marks Japan's first hanging since the execution of Takahiro Shiraishi, known as the 'Twitter killer' for his crimes involving nine victims, in June 2025. Japan, alongside the United States, remains one of the few G7 nations to still practice capital punishment. Public opinion polls indicate significant support for the death penalty, with a 2024 government survey showing 83 percent viewing it as "unavoidable."

Despite public backing, the death penalty system in Japan faces criticism. Concerns are often raised about the lack of transparency and the process by which death row inmates are informed of their impending execution, typically on the morning of their final day. Inmates often spend years, sometimes decades, in solitary confinement awaiting their fate, which campaigners argue has severe mental health consequences.

The justice ministry reported one execution in 2022, three in 2021, three in 2019, and 15 in 2018. Approximately 100 individuals are currently on death row. The 2018 figures included Shoko Asahara and 12 followers of the Aum Shinrikyo cult, responsible for the 1995 sarin gas attacks on the Tokyo subway. Legal stipulations require executions within six months of a final verdict, but delays are common. The government began disclosing the names of executed inmates only in 2007, and past cases of wrongful convictions, such as Iwao Hakamada, highlight systemic issues and the potential for "hostage justice" during lengthy pre-trial detentions.