Local media sites have stated that once it was determined that the man suspected of killing former prime minister Shinzo Abe was competent to stand trial, Japanese authorities indicted him.
Tetsuya Yamagami, 42, was charged with murder and gun laws violations by the Public Prosecutors Office in Nara District after a psychiatric evaluation, according to reports from the Yomiuri daily and Kyodo News agency on Friday.
If found guilty, Yamagami can receive the death penalty.
The 42-year-old suspect was sent earlier this week to a police station in Nara city, where Abe was tragically attacked in July 2022, after spending months undergoing a psychiatric evaluation.
Yamagami was apprehended on the scene on July 8 following the act that rocked the globe, according to reports that he shot Abe with a homemade gun while the former prime minister was making a speech during an election campaign in the western city.
According to reports, the suspect harbored animosity toward the Unification Church and accused Abe of supporting the organization, which he claimed had made his family poor. He claimed the church had convinced his mother to donate about 100 million yen ($776,000) to its cause.
Abe served as prime minister of Japan twice: from 2006 to 2007 and from 2012 to 2020. According to Kyodo News, he resigned from the role owing to health concerns.
The Unification Church, which was established in South Korea in 1954 and is well-known for its mass weddings, relies heavily on donations from its adherents in Japan for financial support.
The murder brought to light evidence that showed the church and Japan’s ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) legislators had had close and long-standing ties. Although the LDP has denied having organizational links to the religion, it has conceded that several lawmakers do.
A record low in terms of public support for Prime Minister Fumio Kishida’s administration was reached as a result of information about relationships between numerous LDP lawmakers and the church.
Details about Yamagami’s upbringing, such as his mother’s alleged neglect of her kids to participate in church activities, also came to light. These revelations led some Japanese citizens to harbor animosity toward the organization and to feel sympathy for the murder suspect.
While he was being assessed for his mental health, donations of money, clothing, food, and literature poured into the Osaka detention facility where he was being housed. According to regional media, some 15,000 individuals also signed a petition urging authorities to be lenient with Yamagami.
Masaaki Furukawa, one of Yamagami’s attorneys, told The Associated Press news agency on Thursday that during his mental evaluation in Osaka, when he was only permitted to visit his sister and three attorneys, his client was in good health.
A panel of laypeople jurors would be used in the case, according to Furukawa. It would be at least a few months before the hearing started because of how complicated the matter was, he said.
