Japan | Death Row Inmate in 2006 Burial-Murder Case Dies in Osaka Custody

OSAKA, Japan — Ryuji Kobayashi, a death row inmate convicted of leading a brutal 2006 double murder that involved burying victims alive, has died in custody, prison officials said. He was 41.

Officers at the Osaka Detention House discovered Kobayashi unresponsive in his cell during a routine morning patrol, with a futon cover wrapped around his neck. He was pronounced dead shortly after being transported to a hospital.

While an autopsy is pending to determine the exact cause of death, the Justice Ministry indicated there were no immediate signs of a struggle or self-inflicted injury.

Kobayashi had been held under high security since his sentencing for a crime that shocked the nation with its premeditated cruelty.

A Case of Extreme Brutality

Kobayashi was the chief architect of a 2006 assault in which two men were abducted and tortured over a financial dispute. The ordeal ended when the victims were driven to a remote site and buried alive. A coroner later determined both men died of suffocation.

While several accomplices received lengthy prison terms, the court handed Kobayashi a death sentence, citing his "pivotal role" and "disregard for human life." His appeals were finalized years ago, leaving him to wait in the limbo of Japan's secretive capital punishment system.

Death Row by the Numbers

Kobayashi’s death comes at a time when Japan’s use of the death penalty remains under intense international scrutiny. Following his passing, the number of inmates on death row in Japan stands at approximately 104.

The system is defined by its long delays and lack of transparency:

• The Long Wait: On average, inmates spend 15 years on death row. Some have remained in solitary confinement for over 40 years.
• Resumed Executions: After a nearly three-year hiatus, Japan resumed executions in June 2025 with the hanging of Takahiro Shiraishi, the "Twitter killer" convicted of murdering nine people.
• Public Support: Despite international pressure to abolish the practice, a 2025 government survey revealed that 83.1% of the Japanese public considers the death penalty "unavoidable," the highest level of support recorded since the mid-1990s.
• Demographics: The death row population is aging rapidly; more than 25% of those awaiting execution are over the age of 70.

A System Under Fire

Human rights organizations, including Amnesty International, have long condemned the "cruel and unusual" nature of Japan’s procedures. Inmates are typically informed of their hanging only a few hours before it occurs, a practice critics say leads to extreme psychological distress.

The recent exoneration of 89-year-old Iwao Hakamada—who spent nearly 50 years on death row before being acquitted in a 2024 retrial—ignited a brief national debate on the risk of judicial error. However, the government has shown no signs of moving toward abolition.

For the families of Kobayashi's victims, his death in a hospital bed marks a quiet, if unexpected, conclusion to a legal saga that spanned two decades.

Source: DPN, Media, Japan Today, DPN, IA, February 1, 2026

"One is absolutely sickened, not by the crimes that the wicked have committed,
but by the punishments that the good have inflicted."

— Oscar Wilde