Japan's prison intake has halved since 2006, but inmates over 70 continue to rise, straining staff resources for dementia care and post-release support.
Inmates arrange protective caps used to cover fruit as part of a work program at Kofu Prison in Yamanashi Prefecture.
The number of people entering prisons and other correctional facilities in Japan has fallen to less than half its 2006 peak, the highest level recorded since 1989.
Meanwhile, the aging of the prison population has become a serious problem. Understaffed prisons are struggling to care for inmates with age-related conditions.
The proportion of elderly inmates has been rising, and the number of inmates aged 70 and older is now 1.7 times what it was in 2006.
"I'm innocent. The court knows that, too. They suddenly brought me here," a male inmate in his 70s at Kofu Prison in Yamanashi Prefecture said in an interview.
He was sentenced to prison for violating the Waste Management and Public Cleansing Act, among other offenses. However, he appeared to have no recollection of his trial.
According to the prison, he has not requested a retrial, and staff suspect that he may have dementia.
The 'Fourth Workshop'
Kofu Prison has a capacity of 612 inmates. Prisoners are assigned to groups called "workshops," which serve as units for their treatment and management. About 70 elderly and disabled inmates belong to the Fourth Workshop.
Only two staff members run the Fourth Workshop. Inmates perform simple tasks, such as straightening polyethylene caps used to cover fruit and polishing wooden building blocks. The floor of the work area is made of soft material to reduce the risk of serious injury in the event of a fall.
One striking feature of the workshop is the large stock of disposable diapers kept there. Eight inmates serve as aides, helping prison staff change diapers and provide other forms of care.
"One inmate defecated in the bathtub, forcing us to cancel bathing for the other inmates," one staff member said.
The staff member in charge of the workshop emphasized the challenges of caring for inmates with dementia.
"When people with dementia are isolated, their symptoms worsen. Providing care requires an enormous amount of effort," the staff member said.
According to the prison, some staff members even study caregiving techniques to better meet these challenges.
Weekly Exercise Sessions
According to the 2025 White Paper on Crime, published by the Ministry of Justice, 14,822 people entered prison in 2024. This was 44.8% of the 33,032 recorded in 2006, the highest figure since 1989.
Meanwhile, the proportion of elderly inmates exceeded 10% in 2014 and reached 14.3% in 2023. Although the figure declined slightly in 2024, it remained at 13.8%.
The increase has been particularly pronounced among inmates aged 70 and older. While inmate numbers have generally declined across other age groups, the number of inmates aged 70 and above has continued to rise. In 2024, it reached 1,370, the second-highest figure on record.
In June 2025, amendments to Japan's Penal Code took effect, abolishing the distinction between imprisonment with labor (choeki) and imprisonment without labor (kinko) and replacing them with a single category of custodial sentence (kokin-kei). The reform also gave correctional facilities greater flexibility to tailor treatment and rehabilitation programs to individual inmates' characteristics and needs.
Since September 2025, Kofu Prison has held weekly exercise sessions for elderly inmates to help maintain and improve their cognitive and physical abilities.
A certified instructor specializing in preventive-care exercise who leads the sessions said she had heard from inmates that the exercises had helped improve their physical condition.
Special arrangements for elderly inmates extend to their meals. The prison provides minced food for inmates who have difficulty swallowing and low-sodium meals for those with high blood pressure.
Life After Prison
Support also includes helping inmates find accommodation and care after their release.
"My older brother is still alive, but we're estranged. I have no other relatives I can turn to. I have nowhere to go when I leave here, so I want to move into a care facility after my release," said an inmate in his 70s who was sentenced to prison for smuggling cannabis.
According to Kofu Prison, many elderly inmates are in similar circumstances and have nowhere to go after their release.
In 2009, the Japanese government established a support system under which prisons, probation offices, and government-supervised community reintegration support centers work together to help elderly inmates gain access to welfare facilities and other forms of assistance after leaving prison. At Kofu Prison, a social welfare specialist is responsible for this work.
As a rule, arranging placements in welfare facilities falls to community reintegration support centers. However, finding suitable placements can be difficult.
"Sometimes we're told that facilities have difficulty accepting people convicted of arson or sex offenses," a welfare specialist at Kofu Prison said.
As a result, prison officials sometimes negotiate directly with local governments responsible for overseeing welfare facilities.
If a former inmate is unable to travel to a welfare facility independently, prison officials may even arrange transportation and accompany the person to the facility.
"The prison system has become a microcosm of an aging society," the welfare specialist said.
(Read the article in Japanese.)
Author: Yutaka Handa, The Sankei Shimbun