In March 1953, an error at the San-Ikukai Hospital in Tokyo dictated the fates of two baby boys born 13 minutes apart. One infant was born to affluent parents, while the other was born to a mother facing financial hardship. Due to a hospital mix-up, the infants were handed to the wrong families, swapping their paths.
A Japanese truck driver lived 60 years in poverty before discovering he was the biological son of a wealthy real estate family. The event went undiscovered for decades until a discarded cigarette butt triggered an investigation that unveiled the truth.
A Life of Hardship and Wealth
The boy born to the affluent parents went home with a struggling mother. His adoptive father passed away when he was two years old, leaving the single mother to raise him on welfare. Growing up in a 100-square-foot or 9.29-square-meter apartment lacking electrical appliances, he worked part-time in a factory and attended night school to survive.
He eventually became a truck driver to support his family. Meanwhile, the baby raised by the wealthy parents experienced a childhood of private tutors and university education, later becoming a real estate company president.
The Suspicion and the Cigarette Butt
Decades passed until the wealthy family’s three younger brothers noticed distinct physical differences between themselves and their eldest brother. They recalled a story from their late mother, who mentioned her newborn was wearing different clothes after a hospital bath in 1953.
Seeking answers in 2009, the younger brothers collected a cigarette butt discarded by their eldest brother and submitted it for DNA testing. The results proved the man had no biological relation to their family.
Tracking the Hospital Records
Armed with the DNA results, the brothers reviewed the San-Ikukai Hospital records from 1953. By tracing the births from that specific day, they located their actual biological brother, the truck driver, in 2011. By the time the siblings tracked him down, their biological parents had already passed away.
The 38 Million Yen Court Ruling
The truck driver filed a lawsuit against the corporation running the hospital. In November 2013, a Tokyo district court ruled in his favor.
The judge ordered the hospital to pay the 60-year-old man 38 million yen or approximately 370,000 USD in damages for the financial and emotional distress caused by the 1953 error. The court acknowledged he was unlawfully separated from his family and denied the financially comfortable environment he was born into.