Susumu Nakayama

was a Japanese serial killer who killed his girlfriend's estranged husband and the latter's girlfriend in 1998, after being paroled from prison for a previous murder conviction in 1969. For the latter crimes, Nakayama was sentenced to death, but died in prison before the sentence could be carried out.

Early life and first murder Susumu Nakayama was born on January 13, 1948, in Shinjuku, Tokyo. Little is known about his upbringing, by the time he was a young adult, he had moved to Kōchi and worked an unspecified job. At the time, he was known to hang around with a group of delinquents who, along with himself, were constantly short on cash, prompting them to start committing crimes.

On March 16, 1968, Nakayama conspired with a friend of his to raid a gun shop in Otsu Village, from where they stole a total of four rifles and five airguns amounting to 117,500 yen. After that, he and several others decided to do a bank robbery, which they began planning sometime around January or February 1969. In order to carry it out, Nakayama raided several stores around Kōchi, stealing bullets and gunpowder and even torching one of the buildings down to cover his tracks. He and his accomplices then stole a car, and tested one of the rifles by firing a single shot at a public toilet in Kōchi. Finally, Nakayama attempted to steal a police officer's handgun, later claiming that "one boat of rifles is not enough to rob a bank." In response to the multiple crimes reported in the area, the Kōchi Prefectural Police established a special unit to deal with the incidents.

At around 21:00 on March 15, 1969, Nakayama and two others ambushed a patrolling police officer near the Sagawa Police Station and shot at him with a rifle. Their timing was off, however, and the officer managed to escape unharmed. On the following day, the three men prepared rifles, bullets and machetes and went to Sagawa by car in search of more policemen, but were forced to turn back after they failed to find any. However, Nakayama, who was involved in a traffic accident just before departure and was being demanded to pay 23,000 yen in damages, came up with the idea of robbing a car somewhere near Takamatsu.

Around 22:30, the trio were driving a car along National Route 23 near Kami when they stopped a 36-year-old motorist and threatened him with a .22-caliber rifle. When the man attempted to get help from passers-by, Nakayama fired one shot into his arm in an attempt to intimidate him. However, the man started to scream, prompting Nakayama to attempt to fire a second shot, which failed to discharge. He then fired a third shot which hit the motorist in the head, killing him instantly. The trio decided against stealing anything, and instead, put the victim's body in the car trunk, whereupon they transported it to a vacant lot in Kami, 900 meters away from the crime scene, and abandoned it there. Initially, it was believed that the incident might be related to the recent shootings perpetrated by Norio Nagayama, but an examination of the shell casings ruled out that possibility. It was eventually established that Nakayama and the two accomplices were responsible for this crime, leading to their arrests not long after. His accomplices, 23 and 17, respectively, were sentenced to life imprisonment and 15 years imprisonment each. Nakayama continued to survey the place for three more days until February 19, at around 1:30 in the morning, when he spotted A and B walking down the street. Upon seeing them, Nakayama rushed at A and repeatedly stabbed him in the neck and chest with a sashimi knife. When B started screaming for help, Nakayama proceeded to stab her multiple times with a sashimi knife and another smaller knife, causing her serious injuries. At the time of death, the pair were 37 and 40 years of age, respectively.

On November 20, Nakayama was found guilty on all charges and sentenced to death. During the proceedings, he claimed that while he intended to make A suffer, he did not intend to kill him. His final appeal to the Supreme Court was also dismissed in a similar manner.

Imprisonment and death After his conviction, Nakayama was placed on death row at the Osaka Detention House to await execution, but continued to petition the courts for a retrial. On June 11, 2013, he was diagnosed with esophageal cancer and transferred to the Osaka Medical Prison in December of that year. He succumbed to the effects of his illness on the night of May 15, 2014.

In an inquiry form dated November 16, 2015, the Osaka Bar Association said that after being transported to the Osaka Medical Prison, the employees presiding over Nakayama failed to provide him with appropriate medication for his cancer. When queried for a reason, the prison administration gave no reply. In response to this, the association issued a statement on March 15, 2018, stating that Nakayama's human rights had been violated and that cancer patients should be given proper treatment, regardless of the severity of their crimes.