Trial of Abe’s killer must delve deep to reveal the truth of the crime

Published October 27, 2025 By admin

The tragedy of a former prime minister being shot with a homemade gun while giving a campaign speech was the catalyst to focus on issues that led up to the slaying.

These include the relationship between politicians and a religious organization as well as religion serving as a form of parental abuse.

As such, we hope that the perpetrator’s trial will move closer to uncovering the truth of what prompted the shocking crime.

The lay judge trial of Tetsuya Yamagami, 45, who is charged with murder and violating the firearms law, will begin on Oct. 28 in Nara District Court for the fatal shooting of former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe in 2022.

The defendant is expected to admit to the murder so the focus of the trial will be on the severity of the punishment.

According to sources, when the defendant was in elementary school, his mother joined the former Unification Church, now known as the Family Federation for World Peace and Unification, and donated about 100 million yen ($654,000) from the insurance she received for her husband’s death and other sources.

She continued with the religion even after declaring bankruptcy and the defendant was forced to abandon plans to attend a university.

During the police investigation, Yamagami reportedly said that the donations led to the collapse of family life and that he felt hatred toward the church. He added that he targeted Abe because of his close ties to the church.

One reason for the long period until the start of the trial is the tactical battle between prosecutors and the defense team during the preparatory procedures.

Regarding what factors should determine the punishment, prosecutors emphasized the egregious nature of the crime while the defense focused on Yamagami’s upbringing and argued the main cause was religious abuse.

As a result, the court allowed all witnesses requested by both sides to appear.

Among those to be called before the court will be Yamagami’s mother, a religious scholar who met with Yamagami while he was detained, as well as lawyers who have led cases over donations to the church.

Unraveling the motive will be an important factor for deciding on the punishment.

We hope that the trial will look into the background of the incident as well as provide once again for the wide sharing with society of child abuse stemming from religious beliefs and the actual situation surrounding the church.

Up to 18 court sessions are scheduled until December and after deliberations a verdict is expected on Jan. 21.

We call on the district court to provide sufficient care, including consideration for the psychological burden, for the lay judges.

These citizen jurists will be asked to shoulder a heavy responsibility for an extended period to make a fair and just decision based on the law and evidence after dispensing with all preconceived notions.

After the incident, facts that had long been hidden in darkness came to light.

One revelation was the many links between the Unification Church and lawmakers, mainly in the ruling Liberal Democratic Party.

Then Prime Minister Fumio Kishida announced that the party would sever all ties with the church.

But efforts by church members to again approach politicians to provide support during elections have recurred.

There is no change now in the responsibility of politicians to fulfill their role in clarifying the entire picture of their connections to the church.

Another important issue is providing relief to victims of the church.

While it has paid some money to former members with whom it had donation problems, there is a large gap in the monetary amounts from what has been tallied by lawyers who consulted with victims.

The Tokyo High Court continues to examine the dissolution order issued by the Tokyo District Court against the church.

Another remaining issue is how to provide effective relief.

Content retrieved from: https://www.asahi.com/ajw/articles/16117430.