Windows - Can't delete folder from Recycle Bin and it won't restore

What worked for me was:

• Shift + right click Command Prompt and Run as Administrator.

• cd C:\$Recycle.Bin

• Now, using dir says "File Not Found", but autocompletion still works, so we can find the names of the directories here by typing, for example dir then pressing Tab repeatedly.

• Thanks to this answer, rd /s (remove directory recursively) on each of the folders in the C:\$Recycle.Bin. For me, they have names starting with "S" and followed by numbers and hyphens, like "S-1-2-3-1234567-12344-121212".

• After that, the recycle bin is back to normal and the stuck folder is gone.

This may be related to a path of a file or folder in the Recycle Bin being longer than some limit. Some alternatives are suggested in this answer: (a) dealing with long file names using UNC \\.\... path notation and (b) using RoboCopy.

What was also useful is enabling Windows Explorer to show hidden system files and folders, like C:\$Recycle.Bin (may be called different on different systems, such as "Recycler"), by: pressing Alt to show the menu in Windows Explorer, Tools | Folder Options, View tab, uncheck Hide protected operating system files (Recommended).