Tetsuya Yamagami faces a verdict for the 2022 murder of Shinzo Abe, a case that exposed ties between lawmakers and the Unification Church.
NARA: The man charged with assassinating former Japanese prime minister Shinzo Abe will receive his verdict on Wednesday, over three years after the shooting shocked the nation.
Tetsuya Yamagami, 45, admitted to the murder when his trial opened last October but is contesting some related charges.
Prosecutors are seeking a life sentence for the “unprecedented” crime, which they say had “extremely serious consequences” for Japanese society.
A queue formed outside the Nara courtroom on Wednesday morning, underscoring the intense public interest in the case.
Yamagami used a handmade gun to kill Japan’s longest-serving leader during a campaign speech in July 2022.
The trial revealed his motive was linked to the Unification Church, which he blamed for his family’s financial ruin.
Prosecutors argued Yamagami targeted Abe to draw public criticism toward the church and its political connections.
His mother’s donations to the church, totalling around 100 million yen, allegedly plunged the family into bankruptcy.
Yamagami’s defence pleaded for leniency, citing a childhood mired in “religious abuse” due to his mother’s extreme faith.
The assassination prompted a national reckoning on gun violence and political ties to religious groups.
Investigations after the killing exposed close links between the Unification Church and many ruling party lawmakers.
A police report noted that security officials failed to immediately recognise the gunshot due to Japan’s rarity of firearm crime.
Yamagami began crafting his lethal weapon in 2020, with prosecutors highlighting the attack’s “premeditated” nature.
The Japanese life sentence he faces allows for parole, though experts note many inmates die while incarcerated.
