Japan Executes 2009 Osaka Pachinko Parlor Arsonist Sunao Takami

Japan executed Sunao Takami, 58, on Aug. 21, 2026, for a 2009 arson attack at an Osaka pachinko parlor that killed five people and injured 10 others, according to the Justice Ministry. The execution, carried out at the Osaka Detention Center, marks the first capital punishment under Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi’s administration and the first in Japan since June 2025.

Execution Details and Court History

According to final court rulings reported by The Yomiuri Shimbun, Takami poured gasoline inside a pachinko parlor located in Osaka’s Konohana Ward on July 5, 2009, and threw a lit match. The resulting fire engulfed the crowded venue, killing five victims aged 20 to 72 and injuring 10 others with severe burns and other wounds.

Takami faced charges of murder, attempted murder, and arson. The Osaka District Court sentenced him to death in 2011, and the Supreme Court rejected his final appeal in 2016, finalizing the capital sentence according to reports from AP News.

Justice Minister Hiroshi Hiraguchi announced the hanging at a news conference on Aug. 21, 2026, stating that the crime caused extreme societal shock and fear. He took the lives of five blameless people, injured 10 others and caused shock and fear throughout society, Hiraguchi said, as quoted by The Yomiuri Shimbun. The anguish of the victims is beyond measure. After careful consideration, I ordered the sentence to be carried out.

Hiraguchi added that the executed inmate left behind victims forced to live with long-term injuries and psychological trauma. With Takami’s execution, the number of prisoners on Japan’s death row stands at 100, according to Justice Ministry figures cited by ABC News.

Political Timing and Transparency Concerns

The execution occurred during a parliamentary recess, prompting criticism from opponents of capital punishment who view the timing as an effort to evade public debate, according to ABC News. Hiraguchi denied any intentional scheduling during the recess during his news conference.

ABC News notes that the hanging has amplified international and domestic scrutiny regarding Japan’s judicial practices. Japan and the United States remain the only two nations within the Group of Seven industrialized democracies that continue to execute prisoners.

Pressure for reform and increased transparency has mounted following the 2024 acquittal of Iwao Hakamada, who had spent decades on death row before being cleared, as reported by ABC News. Capital punishment in Japan is carried out in strict secrecy, with inmates informed of their impending execution only on the morning of their hanging. While the Justice Ministry began releasing the names of executed inmates and basic crime details in 2007, disclosures remain restricted. Hiraguchi stated that he has no plans to alter the disclosure policy, asserting that sharing further details would negatively affect the mental state of remaining death row inmates.

The previous execution in Japan took place in June 2025, when Takahiro Shiraishi—commonly known as the Twitter killer—was put to death for murdering and dismembering nine people in Kanagawa Prefecture in 2017, according to Justice Ministry records cited by The Yomiuri Shimbun.