Statement Concerning Nogawa

Statement of Nogawa (21 - 25 Sept 1947)

29, at present a 1st Surgery Doctor. Nogawa graduated from KIU medical college in 1944, immediately began working in 1st Surgery, has been there since. He was absent from 1st Surgery for several days around 10 June 1945 when married, is also absent each year from around 4 days about 28 May (Father's death).

In previous statement did not tell about administering ether to 4 Prisoners, is confused as to sequence of operations. While he previously says that at one operation there were 2 Prisoner, he now believes there were 3 operations performed one time.

The first series Nogawa attended was about the middle of May when there was but 1 operation on 1 Prisoner, on the lung. The 2nd series Nogawa attended was in the latter part of May on 2 Prisoners, lung and liver operations on the 1st and a stomach operation on the 2nd. The 3rd and la st series Nogawa attended was in early June on 3 Prisoners, and he was out of the room part of the time and does not know what kind of operation the 1st one on the 3rd Prisoner was.

A heart operation was performed on one of the 1st 2 Prisoners, a stomach operation on the other. Nogawa did not see the 1st operation of the day. Nogawa thinks there was a 2nd operation beside the heart operation on one Prisoner. Nogawa looked on the 2nd operation from some distance, is not absolutely certain that it was a stomach operation. Nogawa believes the heart operation was the last.

Nogawa attended 3 series, saw 1 the 1st time, 2 the 2nd, 3 the 3rd time. Nogawa did not see his friend and classmate Tashiro at any of the operations, but someone said he was presetn at the 1st operation. A ll the Prisoners were blindfolded. Nogawa lifted up the blindfold and watched the eyes while giving anesthetic.

About 2-3 days before the 1st operation, Torisu asked Nogawa to come with him to the autopsy building to bring a hammer and pinch bar, and when they ar­rived, he told Nogawa he wanted to take the corrugated iron cover off a box so that the cover could be used as an operating slab. However they could not get the cover off because it was rusted. Torisu stayed in the autopsy room after Nogawa left.

On the day of the 1st operation—2 or 3 days later— Tsutsui told Nogawa about 1400 there was to be an operation on a Prisoner at the autopsy room. Nogawa had seen some of the nurses preparing instruments in the instrument room, was surprised because the instruments are usually prepared in the operating room. Tsutsui said it was to be in the autopsy room.

Either Torisu or Hirao asked Nogawa to come over, more or less invited him to watch. This person asked him to go over in such a way that no one would be suspicious as to what was going on. Nogawa left about 1430, a short time after.

NOGAWA -2-

Statement of Nogawa (21-25 Sept 1947) Cont'd. . . . . . . Present were Ishiyama, Torisu, Hirao, Tsutsui, Semba, Komori and some nurses. Nogawa helped the nurses open the gauze cans, put various things where they wanted them, and helped set up the extension cord for the switchboard since the nurses had already sterilized their hands. About 20 minutes after Nogawa came in, 2 army officers, 2 enlisted men, and 1 Prisoner came in. Komori told the enlisted men to put the Prisoner on the table. Someone took off the Pri­soner's shirt, one of the nurses strapped his legs. Komori removed the bandage on the Prisoner's shoulder; there were several small wounds that appeared to be caused by shot gun pellets; there were several little black spots that appeared to be new wounds.

Ishiyama told Nogawa to give anesthetic to the Prisoner. Nogawa believes that Komori told him that it would not be necessary to give him too much because he had already been injected with some drug. Nogawa gave him about 30 ccs of ether and during the operation occasionally gave him anesthetic, by placing a face mask over the face, allowing more anesthetic in the mask when it began to wear off until the Prisoner again became fully unconscious.

Miki was the only nurse that Nogawa recalls. The lung did not appear diseased but Nogawa didn't see it closely; it appeared that the operation was unneces­sary. Death was caused by Komori's reopening the incision and cutting the artery, the Prisoner bleeding to death.

The following day Hirao or Torisu told Nogawa not to talk about the operation. Hirako came in sifter the operation started, left before it was finished. About 3-4 days after the 1st operation Tsutsui told Nogawa there was to be another operation that afternoon, and either Tsutsui, Hirao or Torisu told Nogawa to go, and again it was not in the form of an order, but Nogawa thought it was his duty to go. He was also told to go in such a way that people would not know where he was going.

Before Nogawa left he asked one of the hospital women if she knew where either Torisu or Hirao was; she said they had gone to the autopsy section. Nogawa went there, asked them about a patient, but the main reason he went was to see the operations.

Someone then told Nogawa to go back to 1st Surgery and get the operating lamp and face mask for either. The Prisoners had not been brought in, but when Nogawa returned about an hour later there were 2 unconscious Prisoners in the room. Nogawa then administered more anesthetic to the Prisoner who had the liver operation. Nogawa believes a lung operation was also performed on this Prisoner, that the 2nd Prisoner had a stomach operation.

Senba and Tsutsui also helped administer ether to the 2nd (stomach) Prisoner. Nogawa did not see Tashiro at this operation. No one told Nogawa the opera­tions were experimental; however, they did not appear necessary. Proper care was not taken to see that the patients lived.

During the 2nd series, Nogawa administered ether to the 1st Prisoner, held the operating lamp part of the time. Nogawa is sure that there were 3 Prisoners the 3rd time. Nogawa was standing back of the autopsy building when

NOGAWA -3-

Statement of Nogawa Cont'd. ......   an army truck came up, saw 2 Prisoners then, a 3rd one in the operating room later.

At one time Nogawa went back to 1st Surgery to see one of his patients and to bring back some camphor to be injected in one of the Prisoners and went outside and stood around for a while. Nogawa had no assigned duties, did administer anesthetic several times, made the trip s to 1st Surgery to get things forgotten, held the lamps on 2-3 operations.

The 3 Prisoners of the la st series appeared to have been drugged. Ishiyama told Nogawa to administer anesthesia to the Prisoner in the little room near the autopsy room. There were several soldiers and Morimoto present when he did so. There was also a 2nd Prisoner in this room and one who had been taken in the autopsy room immediately. Nogawa then returned to the autopsy room and about 1 hour later Ishiyama told Nogawa to administer anesthetic to the 3rd Prisoner.

Nogawa believes the 3rd operation was on a liver. The 2nd one was on the stomach, probably.

The 3rd operation was a heart operation, performed before liver operation completed. The 3rd Prisoner (heart) died about 1/2 hour after the operation.

Nogawa saw a jar of blood on the floor near an operating table, which would hold about 3000 ccs, there was about 10000 ccs of blood; Did not see the leg operation. There was a rubber hose nearby.

During either the 1st or 2nd series, Nogawa saw Tanaka and another standing by one of the bodies; it looked as though they may have been removing speci­mens.

Nogawa administered anesthetic of ether to 4 Prisoners, normal amounts.