Tetsuya Yamagami shot and killed Shinzo Abe with a homemade gun while the politician was giving a speech in Nara. He told police he had also hoped to kill a leader in the unnamed religious group
, Tetsuya Yamagami prepared, stockpiling homemade firearms and explosives and studying the former Japanese prime minister’s schedule.
Mr. Yamagami was arrested immediately after shooting Mr. Abe, who died five hours later in hospital. The shooter did not attempt to flee, witnesses say, as he was tackled by Mr. Abe’s security detail. Police said Mr. Yamagami confessed to wanting to kill the former premier. A neighbour of Mr. Yamagami recalled seeing him two days before the attack, saying he ignored her greeting.
The killer told police he studied Mr. Abe’s schedule online as he built weapons in order to kill him. He had also hoped to kill a leader in the unnamed religious group, according to multiple reports. He said police and the media are walking a delicate line, as withholding information can provoke conspiracies and accusations the authorities are doing so because they are controlled by the groups involved.
A right-wing nationalist who sought to restore traditional practices in Japan, Mr. Abe had ties with a number of faith groups, targeting conservative believers as a steady supply of votes for his Liberal Democratic Party.
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