Japanese authorities apologise at grave of wrongfully accused man

Japanese officials have offered a formal apology at the grave of a businessman for wrongly pressing charges against him for exporting potentially sensitive industrial equipment, bowing and placing flowers at his resting place.

Shizuo Aishima, along with three other executives, was arrested in March 2020 over unlawful exports. He passed away from stomach cancer in February 2021, five months before prosecutors dropped the indictments, the BBC reports.

Family members gathered at his grave in Yokohama on Monday (25 August) to accept the apology, though his widow said she could not forgive those responsible for the charge.

Following his death, pursued damages before a court in Tokyo in September 2021, which ruled that the indictments were unlawful and ordered the authorities to pay 166 million yen ($1.12 million) in compensation.

The charges were linked to the Japanese firm Ohkawara Kakohki's export of spray dryers, machines that can turn liquids into powder or granules and can be used in the military.

The company argued its products were not covered by export controls. Prosecutors ultimately retracted the indictments in July 2021, citing "doubts" on the guilt of the accused.

"We sincerely apologise for the serious human rights violation caused by illegally requesting his detention and filing a prosecution, and for depriving Aishima of opportunities for medical treatment by inappropriately rejecting his bail request," prosecutor Hiroshi Ichikawa said.

Aishima had submitted eight bail requests, all of which were denied

Neither the Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department nor the Tokyo District Public Prosecutors Office appealed the damages ruling, which became final on 11 June.

Authorities later conducted a review of the wrongful indictment. 

Families of the wrongfully accused, however, said the inquiry failed to reveal the true cause of the mistake and that the disciplinary measures taken were inadequate.