「自白すれば立件減らす」身に覚えのない罪で突然逮捕　30代男性が密室で追い詰められた違法な取り調べ　なくならないえん罪の背景にも

A man who was illegally interrogated by Saga Prefectural Police investigators on charges he did not commit has testified about the details of the incident. "It's easier to admit it," "I want to die"... The man, who was cornered in a closed room, says he still thinks about what happened. Regarding interrogations conducted by police and other investigative agencies of suspects and witnesses, inappropriate words and actions by investigators have been revealed many times. What emerged from the man's testimony was the reality of interrogation rooms being "closed-room" environments. The man arrested for stealing traffic lights from a construction site A man in his 30s from Fukuoka Prefecture "I wonder what would have happened if I had done what they (the police) told me to do, and what I would be doing now," This is the reflection of a man in his 30s living in Fukuoka Prefecture. In January 2021, he was arrested by Saga Prefectural Police on suspicion of theft for allegedly conspiring with others to steal traffic lights from a construction site. He was re-arrested on separate charges, and his detention period lasted 40 days. During that time, the man was interrogated by a police sergeant belonging to the Saga Kita Police Station. A man in his 30s from Fukuoka Prefecture: "I was told I had stolen a traffic light, and I thought it was just a regular traffic light, so I asked how I could steal one, and they said, 'It was a traffic light at a construction site,' and I thought that was it, so I told them I hadn't done anything." The "deal" the police sergeant offered the man Initially, the man denied the charges, but after receiving advice from his lawyer, he changed to remaining silent. Then, the police sergeant offered him a certain "deal." Police Sergeant "If you talk, we might be able to shorten the detention extension to about 5 days instead of 10. We might also try to avoid filing charges if possible. You're the ace at Kita Police Station, so you have a certain degree of authority." "Telling a police officer to reduce charges if you confess" constitutes inducement and is an illegal interrogation. Man in his 30s from Fukuoka Prefecture "The 'ace at Kita Police Station' part made an impact. He said, 'I can decide whether to make the sentence harsher or lighter.'" The contents of the "confession statement" that surprised the man And what surprised the man the most was the "confession statement" that the police sergeant showed him. The statement at the time, despite him having continued to deny or remain silent about the incident, stated, "There's no doubt I stole it." The man was persistently pressured to sign this "confession statement." A man in his 30s from Fukuoka Prefecture: "They kept asking me to sign the statement for two or three hours, and when I said I couldn't, they asked, 'What should we redo?' Even when I said it was all lies and not true, they kept insisting, 'Sign it, sign it,' for two or three hours." "I want to die," "This is too hard": The man was cornered. The man's notes from the time contained phrases like "I want to die" and "This is too hard," reflecting the mental torment he felt during the interrogation. A man in his 30s from Fukuoka Prefecture: "It was tough. They would believe me if I said I did it, but they kept asking me to tell the truth, and when I told the truth they said, 'No,' so I kept thinking that it would be easier." Reporter: "So you thought it would be easier to say you did it than to plead your innocence?" A man in his 30s from Fukuoka Prefecture: "I thought it would be easier. I hated going to the interrogation." Ultimately, the man did not sign the statement. The court ruled the interrogation "illegal." The prosecutor subsequently decided not to prosecute, and the man filed a lawsuit against Saga Prefecture seeking compensation. In December 2025, the Fukuoka High Court, in the second trial, ruled that the interrogation violated the man's right to remain silent and therefore "illegal." The court ordered Saga Prefecture to pay approximately 440,000 yen in compensation. The judgment became final in January 2026. The Saga Prefectural Police, whose actions were deemed "illegal" by the court, stated... Saga Prefectural Police Chief Hideyuki Fukuda: "We will continue to strive for proper interrogation practices. We have reaffirmed our commitment to thorough investigation and proper interrogation." The persistent problem of "illegal interrogations": the "closed-room" setting is a contributing factor. Why do "illegal interrogations" like the one the man experienced occur? The lawyer representing the man points to the "closed-room" setting as a contributing factor. Attorney Soichiro Deguchi "(In this case) the police officers themselves stated in court that they wanted to obtain confessions, and that they would just create confession statements without verifying their truthfulness, saying that they could verify their truthfulness later. This clearl...