A chief district public prosecutor in central Japan has apologized in person to an 88-year-old man who was acquitted in a retrial over a 1966 murder case after spending decades on death row.

Yamada Hideo, who heads the Shizuoka District Public Prosecutors Office, visited the home of Hakamada Iwao in the city of Hamamatsu on Wednesday and apologized.

Yamada said prosecutors are deeply sorry for the indescribable suffering that Hakamada and his sister had to endure. He added that prosecutors no longer regard Hakamada as the culprit in the case, having accepted his acquittal.

Hakamada's elder sister, Hideko, was present during the meeting. She said that she and her brother believe it was their fate to have lived the way they did for the past 58 years. She added that at this stage, they do not blame the prosecution, and they are overjoyed that the acquittal has been finalized.

Hakamada was accused of killing a family of four in the city of Shizuoka in 1966. His death sentence was finalized in 1980. But he pleaded innocent and sought retrials.

The Shizuoka District Court found Hakamada not guilty in September this year in a retrial. The Supreme Public Prosecutors Office announced its decision not to appeal on October 8, and the Shizuoka District Public Prosecutors Office waived its right to appeal his acquittal the next day.

The head of the Shizuoka prefectural police, Tsuda Takayoshi, also visited Hakamada's home on October 21 and apologized to him on behalf of the police.