Hearing of man accused of killing Japan’s ex-PM Shinzo Abe cancelled over suspicious object
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Tetsuya Yamagami faces charges of murder and violation of arms control laws, and could face the death penalty if convicted.
PHOTO: AFP
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TOKYO - A pre-trial hearing for the man accused of killing Japan’s former prime minister Shinzo Abe
Nara District Court could not immediately confirm the reports by outlets including public broadcaster NHK, with TV footage showing people gathered outside the evacuated building in western Japan.
The suspicious item was reportedly a roughly square-shaped cardboard box about 33cm long, sealed with adhesive tape, which set off a metal detector.
Tetsuya Yamagami had been due to appear on Monday afternoon for a hearing over Mr Abe’s broad-daylight assassination, which shocked the world in July 2022
The 42-year-old faces charges of murder and violation of arms control laws
He reportedly targeted Mr Abe – Japan’s best-known politician and longest-serving prime minister ties to the Unification Church
Yamagami is believed to have resented the church over large donations his mother made that bankrupted his family.
Mr Abe was shot with an apparently homemade gun while speaking at a campaign event in Nara on July 8.
The circumstances of the assassination have ignited scrutiny of what the authorities admitted were security shortcomings, and led to the resignation of Japan’s police chief
Before the cancelled hearing, Yamagami underwent a psychiatric assessment, which ended in January.
He had spent three years in the navy following a childhood reportedly marred by his father’s suicide and his mother’s alleged neglect and devotion to church activities.
Details of his upbringing have stoked anger in Japan against the Unification Church and garnered Yamagami sympathy, with supporters showing support for him through donations and a petition calling for leniency.
The Unification Church was founded in South Korea in the 1950s by self-styled messiah Sun Myung-moon.
In a letter published by Japanese media, Yamagami accused Mr Abe of supporting the sect and expressed resentment towards the group.
The church has confirmed his mother’s membership but refused to specify the amount of donations she made, which reports said may have totalled around 100 million yen (S$962,000).
Less than a year after Mr Abe’s death, a man hurled an explosive device towards Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida
The leader escaped unharmed, but the fact that an assailant was able to throw the device at such close range prompted renewed criticism of security arrangements
