The man suspected of shooting dead former Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe pleaded guilty on Tuesday, October 28, at the opening of his murder trial, three years after the events that took place in the middle of the street and caused shock around the world.
Tetsuya Yamagami, 45, is accused of shooting the former Japanese leader with a homemade weapon during an election rally on July 8, 2022 in Nara (west). He is charged with first-degree murder and violating the gun control law.
“It’s all true, I did it”Tetsuya Yamagami said after the charges were read. He had entered the Nara courtroom a few minutes earlier, wearing a black T-shirt and with his long hair tied up, accompanied by four guards. However, his lawyer said he would contest some of the charges.
If convicted of murder, Tetsuya Yamagami faces a lengthy prison sentence. The death penalty exists in Japan, but is more often imposed in cases involving multiple victims. The verdict is expected in January.
Deep resentment towards the “Moon Sect”
This tragedy sent shockwaves through a country where gun crimes are extremely rare. The fact that the alleged killer was angry with Mr. Abe for his alleged ties to the Unification Church, known as the “Moon Sect,” also led to an investigation into the practices of this religious organization accused of exerting financial pressure on its believers, as well as its ties to Japan’s political world.
The organization was founded in South Korea in 1954 by Sun Myung Moon and quickly became involved in politics, with Mr Moon also interacting with foreign heads of state such as US President Richard Nixon. The Moon Sect claimed in 2012 that it had three million followers worldwide. However, according to experts, this number would be greatly exaggerated.
Tetsuya Yamagami harbored a deep grudge against the organization, which he blamed for his family’s downfall after his mother reportedly paid him nearly 100 million yen (about a million dollars at the time) in donations.
A preliminary hearing had to be canceled in June 2023 after the discovery of a suspicious package at the court, which turned out to contain a petition requesting a lenient sentence for the suspect.
Tuesday’s debates should focus on the mitigating circumstances related to the suspect’s troubled childhood, characterized by “religious abuse” According to local media, it is linked to his mother’s devotion to the moon cult. The defense must deny any political motive, while the prosecution will continue to insist on premeditation and the seriousness of the facts.
A former classmate of Tetsuya Yamagami, interviewed by the newspaper Asahiconfided that he was having difficulty reconciling his memory of being a schoolboy “shy” with that of “demon” who killed Shinzo Abe, then 67 years old.
Strengthened gun laws
The investigation revealed close ties between the Unification Church and several elected officials of the Liberal Democratic Party (PLD, nationalist right) in power in Japan, leading to the resignation of four ministers at the time. An internal PLD investigation showed in September 2022 that half of the then 379 elected representatives in parliament had relations with the Unification Church. In April, a court ordered the dissolution of the organization’s Japanese branch, citing concerns “unprecedented damage” caused to Japanese society.
Mr Abe’s assassination also exposed flaws in the security system, as the police present did not immediately recognize the sound of the first shot and intervened too late to save the former prime minister.
The tragedy led to a strengthening of legislation on weapons in 2024. Distributing tutorials on its manufacture or spreading information about its sale on social networks is punishable by one year in prison.
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