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Flower park in eastern Japan

Tourists from Taiwan stroll in a flower park in Ashikaga in Tochigi Prefecture, eastern Japan, on June 17, 2025.

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Wisteria flowers in eastern Japan

Wisteria flowers are in full bloom at a flower park in Ashikaga in Tochigi Prefecture, eastern Japan, on May 1, 2025.

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Wisteria flowers in eastern Japan

People watch wisteria flowers at a flower park in Ashikaga in Tochigi Prefecture, eastern Japan, on April 26, 2023.

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Wisteria flowers in eastern Japan

People watch wisteria flowers at a flower park in Ashikaga in Tochigi Prefecture, eastern Japan, on April 26, 2023.

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Japan PM Kishida

Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida speaks to reporters after visiting a facility for people with disabilities in Ashikaga in Tochigi Prefecture, eastern Japan, on July 21, 2023. (Pool photo)

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Japan PM Kishida

Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida (R) visits a facility for people with disabilities in Ashikaga in Tochigi Prefecture, eastern Japan, on July 21, 2023. (Pool photo)

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Mitsubishi Tanabe Pharma unit inspected

UTSUNOMIYA, Japan - Photo taken on Jan. 26, 2011, shows a plant of Mitsubishi Tanabe Pharma Factory Ltd., a subsidiary of Mitsubishi Tanabe Pharma Corp., in Ashikaga, Tochigi Prefecture. Government officials inspected the plant the same day, suspecting it shipped out drugs without checking their quality.

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People treated to pink floral shower

ASHIKAGA, Japan - People enjoy viewing a lit up wisteria in full bloom at the Ashikaga Flower Park in Ashikaga, Tochigi Prefecture, north of Tokyo, on May 8, 2010. The huge tree is some 140 years old.

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3 foreigners pass Japanese national nursing exam

ASHIKAGA, Japan - Lalin Ever Gammed smiles during a news conference in Ashikaga, Tochigi Prefecture, north of Tokyo, on March 26, 2010, after becoming the first Filipino to beat the language barrier and pass the Japanese national nursing exam. Two other foreign nurses, both from Indonesia, also passed the exam that enables them to remain in Japan for a long time.

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Man wrongly convicted of 1990 murder acquitted

UTSUNOMIYA, Japan - Toshikazu Sugaya, who served 17 years in prison for a 1990 murder before being released following a new DNA test, looks up at the sky in front of the Utsunomiya District Court in Tochigi Prefecture on March 26, 2010, after the court acquitted him. Sugaya's initial conviction in the death of a 4-year-old girl in Ashikaga, Tochigi Prefecture, was based on flawed DNA testing and a false confession.

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Man wrongly convicted of 1990 murder acquitted

UTSUNOMIYA, Japan - Toshikazu Sugaya, who served 17 years in prison for a 1990 murder before being released following a new DNA test, smiles during at a news conference in Utsunomiya on March 26, 2010, after the Utsunomiya District Court acquitted him. Sugaya's initial conviction in the death of Mami Matsuda, 4, in Ashikaga, Tochigi Prefecture, was based on flawed DNA testing and a false confession.

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Man wrongly convicted of 1990 murder acquitted

UTSUNOMIYA, Japan - Toshikazu Sugaya, who served 17 years in prison for a 1990 murder before being released following a new DNA test, speaks at a news conference in Utsunomiya on March 26, 2010, after the Utsunomiya District Court acquitted him. Sugaya's initial conviction in the death of Mami Matsuda, 4, in Ashikaga, Tochigi Prefecture, was based on flawed DNA testing and a false confession.

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Man wrongly convicted of 1990 murder acquitted

UTSUNOMIYA, Japan - Toshikazu Sugaya, who served 17 years in prison for a 1990 murder before being released following a new DNA test, celebrates in front of the Utsunomiya District Court in Utsunomiya on March 26, 2010, after the court acquitted him. Sugaya's initial conviction in the death of Mami Matsuda, 4, in Ashikaga, Tochigi Prefecture, was based on flawed DNA testing and a false confession.

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Man wrongly convicted of 1990 murder acquitted

UTSUNOMIYA, Japan - Toshikazu Sugaya, who served 17 years in prison for a 1990 murder before being released following a new DNA test, holds up a banner showing the Utsunomiya Court's ruling to acquit him in front of the court in Utsunomiya on March 26, 2010. The verdict formally cleared Sugaya, a former kindergarten bus driver convicted of killing Mami Matsuda, 4, in Ashikaga, Tochigi Prefecture, based on flawed DNA testing and a false confession.

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Man wrongly convicted of 1990 murder acquitted

UTSUNOMIYA, Japan - Toshikazu Sugaya, who served 17 years in prison for a 1990 murder before being released following a new DNA test, holds up a banner showing the Utsunomiya Court's ruling to acquit him in front of the court in Utsunomiya on March 26, 2010. The verdict formally cleared Sugaya, a former kindergarten bus driver convicted of killing Mami Matsuda, 4, in Ashikaga, Tochigi Prefecture, based on flawed DNA testing and a false confession.

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Man wrongly convicted of 1990 murder acquitted

UTSUNOMIYA, Japan - Toshikazu Sugaya, who served 17 years in prison for a 1990 murder before being released following a new DNA test, is moved to tears in front of the Utsunomiya District Court in Utsunomiya on March 26, 2010, after the court acquitted him. Sugaya's initial conviction in the death of Mami Matsuda, 4, in Ashikaga, Tochigi Prefecture, was based on flawed DNA testing and a false confession.

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Man wrongly convicted of 1990 murder acquitted

UTSUNOMIYA, Japan - Toshikazu Sugaya, who served 17 years in prison for a 1990 murder before being released following a new DNA test, celebrates in front of the Utsunomiya District Court in Utsunomiya on March 26, 2010, after the court acquitted him. Sugaya's initial conviction in the death of Mami Matsuda, 4, in Ashikaga, Tochigi Prefecture, was based on flawed DNA testing and a false confession.

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Man wrongly convicted of 1990 murder acquitted

UTSUNOMIYA, Japan - Toshikazu Sugaya, who served 17 years in prison for a 1990 murder before being released following a new DNA test, is surrounded by reporters in front of the Utsunomiya District Court in Utsunomiya on March 26, 2010, after the court acquitted him. Sugaya's initial conviction in the death of Mami Matsuda, 4, in Ashikaga, Tochigi Prefecture, was based on flawed DNA testing and a false confession.

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Man wrongly convicted of 1990 murder acquitted

UTSUNOMIYA, Japan - Toshikazu Sugaya, who served 17 years in prison for a 1990 murder before being released following a new DNA test, holds up a banner showing the Utsunomiya Court's ruling to acquit him in front of the court in Utsunomiya on March 26, 2010. The verdict formally cleared Sugaya, a former kindergarten bus driver convicted of killing Mami Matsuda, 4, in Ashikaga, Tochigi Prefecture, based on flawed DNA testing and a false confession.

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Man wrongly convicted of 1990 murder acquitted

UTSUNOMIYA, Japan - Toshikazu Sugaya, who served 17 years in prison for a 1990 murder before being released following a new DNA test, celebrates in front of the Utsunomiya District Court in Utsunomiya on March 26, 2010, after the court acquitted him. Sugaya's initial conviction in the death of Mami Matsuda, 4, in Ashikaga, Tochigi Prefecture, was based on flawed DNA testing and a false confession.

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Man wrongly convicted of 1990 murder acquitted

UTSUNOMIYA, Japan - Toshikazu Sugaya, who served 17 years in prison for a 1990 murder before being released following a new DNA test, celebrates in front of the Utsunomiya District Court in Utsunomiya on March 26, 2010, after the court acquitted him. Sugaya's initial conviction in the death of Mami Matsuda, 4, in Ashikaga, Tochigi Prefecture, was based on flawed DNA testing and a false confession.

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Man wrongly convicted of 1990 murder acquitted

UTSUNOMIYA, Japan - Toshikazu Sugaya (C), who served 17 years in prison before being released following a new DNA test over 1990 murder case, speaks to reporters in front of the Utsunomiya District Court in Utsunomiya on March 26, 2010, before entering the court to hear the court's ruling on his retrial. The court acquitted Sugaya, whose initial conviction in the death of Mami Matsuda, 4, in Ashikaga, Tochigi Prefecture, was based on flawed DNA testing and a false confession.

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Man wrongly convicted of 1990 murder acquitted

UTSUNOMIYA, Japan - Toshikazu Sugaya (C), who served 17 years in prison before being released following a new DNA test over a 1990 murder case, heads for the Utsunomiya District Court in Utsunomiya on March 26, 2010, to hear the court's ruling on his retrial. The court acquitted Sugaya, whose initial conviction in the death of Mami Matsuda, 4, in Ashikaga, Tochigi Prefecture, was based on flawed DNA testing and a false confession.

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Man wrongly convicted of 1990 murder acquitted

UTSUNOMIYA, Japan - Toshikazu Sugaya (C), who served 17 years in prison before being released following a new DNA test over a 1990 murder case, heads for the Utsunomiya District Court in Utsunomiya on March 26, 2010, to hear the court's ruling on his retrial. The court acquitted Sugaya, whose initial conviction in the death of Mami Matsuda, 4, in Ashikaga, Tochigi Prefecture, was based on flawed DNA testing and a false confession.

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Man wrongly convicted of 1990 murder acquitted

UTSUNOMIYA, Japan - Toshikazu Sugaya (C), who served 17 years in prison before being released following a new DNA test over a 1990 murder case, heads for the Utsunomiya District Court in Utsunomiya on March 26, 2010, to hear the court's ruling on his retrial. The court acquitted Sugaya, whose initial conviction in the death of Mami Matsuda, 4, in Ashikaga, Tochigi Prefecture, was based on flawed DNA testing and a false confession.

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Man wrongly convicted of 1990 murder acquitted

UTSUNOMIYA, Japan - People form long lines in front of the Utsunomiya District Court in Utsunomiya on March 26, 2010, to get tickets to the gallery seats to hear the court's ruling on the retrial of Toshikazu Sugaya, who served 17 years in prison over a 1990 murder before being released following a new DNA test. The court acquitted Sugaya, whose initial conviction in the death of Mami Matsuda, 4, in Ashikaga, Tochigi Prefecture, was based on flawed DNA testing and a false confession.

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Man wrongly convicted of 1990 murder acquitted

UTSUNOMIYA, Japan - People form long lines in front of the Utsunomiya District Court in Utsunomiya on March 26, 2010, to get tickets to the gallery seats to hear the court's ruling on the retrial of Toshikazu Sugaya, who served 17 years in prison over a 1990 murder before being released following a new DNA test. The court acquitted Sugaya, whose initial conviction in the death of Mami Matsuda, 4, in Ashikaga, Tochigi Prefecture, was based on flawed DNA testing and a false confession.

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Specialist testifies Sugaya's DNA did not match evidence

UTSUNOMIYA, Japan - At the Tochigi prefectural government building, 63-year-old ex-convict Toshikazu Sugaya, who was wrongly arrested and sentenced to life in prison, speaks during a news conference on Nov. 24, 2009, after his trial at the Utsunomiya District Court. Sugaya was arrested and indicted in December 1991 on suspicion of killing a 4-year-old girl in Ashikaga, Tochigi Prefecture in May 1990, but the latest trial is expected to formally exonerate him, finding he was wrongly convicted.

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Man wrongly convicted of 1990 murder pleads innocence in retrial

TOKYO, Japan - Toshikazu Sugaya, 63, who spent 17 years in jail after being wrongly convicted of murdering a 4-year-old girl in 1990 in Ashikaga, Tochigi Prefecture, speaks during a news conference at the Tochigi prefectural office on Oct. 21 after attending his retrial at the Utsunomiya District Court in the prefecture.

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Man wrongly convicted of 1990 murder pleads innocence in retrial

TOKYO, Japan - Toshikazu Sugaya, 63, who spent 17 years in jail after being wrongly convicted of murdering a 4-year-old girl in 1990 in Ashikaga, Tochigi Prefecture, walks to the Utsunomiya District Court in Utsunomiya in the prefecture on Oct. 21, 2009, to attend his retrial. He pleaded not guilty and called for clarifying the truth behind the false accusation in the retrial, which began the same day.

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Released man prays for murdered girl

ASHIKAGA, Japan - Toshikazu Sugaya (front), 62, who is believed to have been wrongfully convicted in the 1990 murder of a 4-year-old girl in Ashikaga, Tochigi Prefecture, visits the site where the girl's body was found. Sugaya was released earlier this month after 17 years in prison.

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Police chief apologizes to released man

UTSUNOMIYA, Japan - Toshikazu Sugaya, 62, who appears to have been wrongfully convicted for the 1990 murder of a 4-year-old girl in Ashikaga, Tochigi Prefecture, speaks during a news conference in Utsunomiya on June 17, after receiving an apology from the chief of the Tochigi prefectural police, Shoichiro Ishikawa. Sugaya was released earlier this month after 17 years in prison.

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Released man prays for murdered girl

ASHIKAGA, Japan - Toshikazu Sugaya, 62, who is believed to have been wrongfully convicted in the 1990 murder of a 4-year-old girl in Ashikaga, Tochigi Prefecture, prays for the girl near the spot where her body was found. Sugaya was released earlier this month after 17 years in prison.

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Police chief apologizes to released man

UTSUNOMIYA, Japan - Toshikazu Sugaya, 62, who appears to have been wrongfully convicted for the 1990 murder of a 4-year-old girl in Ashikaga, Tochigi Prefecture, closes his eyes during a news conference in Utsunomiya on June 17, after receiving an apology from the chief of the Tochigi prefectural police, Shoichiro Ishikawa. Sugaya was released earlier this month after 17 years in prison.

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Police chief apologizes to released man

UTSUNOMIYA, Japan - Toshikazu Sugaya, 62, who appears to have been wrongfully convicted for the 1990 murder of a 4-year-old girl in Ashikaga, Tochigi Prefecture, speaks during a news conference in Utsunomiya on June 17, after receiving an apology from the chief of the Tochigi prefectural police, Shoichiro Ishikawa. Sugaya was released earlier this month after 17 years in prison.

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Police chief apologizes to released man

UTSUNOMIYA, Japan - The chief of the Tochigi prefectural police, Shoichiro Ishikawa (R), apologizes to Toshikazu Sugaya (L), 62, who appears to have been wrongfully convicted for the 1990 murder of a 4-year-old girl in Ashikaga, Tochigi Prefecture. Sugaya was released from 17 years of prison earlier this month.

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Police chief apologizes to released man

UTSUNOMIYA, Japan - The chief of the Tochigi prefectural police, Shoichiro Ishikawa (R), apologizes to Toshikazu Sugaya (2nd from L), 62, who appears to have been wrongfully convicted for the 1990 murder of a 4-year-old girl in Ashikaga, Tochigi Prefecture. Sugaya was released from 17 years of prison earlier this month.

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Court to decide on 1990 murder retrial next week to acquit man

TOKYO, Japan - Toshikazu Sugaya (C), who was jailed for 17 years and released earlier this month after fresh DNA tests indicated his innocence, speaks at a news conference in Tokyo on June 16 after the Tokyo High Court announced it will decide next week whether to start a retrial in the 1990 murder case of a 4-year-old girl. Sugaya was convicted of kidnapping and murdering the girl in Ashikaga, Tochigi Prefecture, but was freed on June 4 by the Tokyo High Public Prosecutors Office.

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Man jailed for life for 1990 murder freed after DNA test

TOKYO, Japan - Toshikazu Sugaya, 62, who was serving a life sentence for the 1990 murder of a 4-year-old girl in Ashikaga, Tochigi Prefecture, holds a bouquet of flowers after a press conference at a hotel in Chiba on June 4. Earlier in the day, Sugaya was released after 17 years in jail as prosecutors told a high court they will accept a retrial because a recent DNA test highly likely proves his innocence.

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Man jailed for life for 1990 murder freed after DNA test

TOKYO, Japan - Toshikazu Sugaya, 62, who was serving a life sentence for the 1990 murder of a 4-year-old girl in Ashikaga, Tochigi Prefecture, smiles during a press conference at a hotel in Chiba on June 4 after being released after 17 years in jail as prosecutors told a high court they will accept a retrial because a recent DNA test highly likely proves his innocence.

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Ashikaga Bank ends operations under state control

UTSUNOMIYA, Japan - Ashikaga Bank President Satoru Fujisawa speaks during a news conference in Utsunomiya, Tochigi Prefecture, on July 1. Ashikaga Holdings Co., formed by an investment consortium, said the same day it has acquired all shares in Ashikaga Bank from the government, converting the once-nationalized bank into a wholly owned subsidiary.

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Ashikaga Bank, Misuzu Audit to settle damages suit

UTSUNOMIYA, Japan - Ashikaga Bank President Norito Ikeda speaks at a news conference in Utsunomiya, Tochigi Prefecture on July 2, announcing that the bank has reached a basic agreement with Misuzu Audit Corp. to settle their court battle in which the regional lender had sought 1.1 billion yen in damages from the audit firm in connection with the bank's 2003 nationalization.

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Wisteria in Ashikaga in full bloom

ASHIKAGA, Japan - Tourists enjoy viewing wisteria in full bloom at the Ashikaga Flower Park in Ashikaga, Tochigi Prefecture, on May 2. This tree, aged more than 140 years, is the oldest among some 290 trees at the park. Park officials said the flower will remain in full bloom until around May 14.

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Ashikaga Bank incurs 679 bil. yen negative net worth

UTSUNOMIYA, Japan - Nationalized Ashikaga Bank President Norito Ikeda tells reporters in Utsunomiya, Tochigi Prefecture, on June 11 that the bank developed a negative net worth of 679.0 billion yen in fiscal 2003 due to a surge in loan-loss charges stemming mainly from stricter assessment of the performances of its corporate borrowers.

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(2)Parents rejoice at release of 2 Japanese in Iraq

ASHIKAGA, Japan - Kunio (L) and Kazue Watanabe, parents of Nobutaka Watanabe, one of two Japanese men released in Iraq, speak of their joy and relief outside their house in Ashikaga, Tochigi Prefecture, on April 17.

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Ashikaga Bank to cut 300 jobs, cut labor costs by 30%

UTSUNOMIYA, Japan - Ashikaga Bank President Norihito Ikeda speaks at a press conference in Utsunomiya, Tochigi Prefecture, on Feb. 6. He said the bank plans to cut about 300 jobs by the end of March 2006 under a restructuring program aimed at turning the temporarily nationalized bank around.

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Former Bank of Yokohama exec to head Ashikaga Bank

TOKYO, Japan - Norito Ikeda, former chief personnel officer of the Bank of Yokohama, speaks at a news conference in Utsunomiya, Tochigi Prefecture, on Dec. 16. The government decided to appoint him as president of the recently nationalized bank.

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Gov't OKs takeover of insolvent Ashikaga Bank

UTSUNOMIYA, Japan - Yoshiaki Higano, president of Ashikaga Bank, speaks to reporters at the bank's head office in Utsunomiya, Tochigi Prefecture, on Nov. 29 following a government decision to nationalize the insolvent regional bank.

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Gov't decides to nationalize insolvent Ashikaga Bank

TOKYO, Japan - Bank of Japan Governor Toshihiko Fukui is surrounded by reporters at the prime minister's office in Tokyo on Nov. 29 before attending a meeting of the Financial System Management Council there. The meeting decided to nationalize insolvent Ashikaga Bank, the regional bank in Tochigi Prefecture.

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Ashikaga Bank head to quit due to poor performance

UTSUNOMIYA, Japan - Ashikaga Bank President Shin Iizuka announces his resignation at a press conference in Utsunomiya, Tochigi Prefecture, on Oct. 16. He said he will resign next year to take the blame for the bank's failure to pay dividends on preferred shares, which the government purchased to help the bank boost its capital.