The trial began and Tetsuya Yamagami admitted to killing Japan’s longest-serving leader three years ago.
Published October 28, 2025
A man accused of killing former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe in 2022 has pleaded guilty to murder.
According to Japanese broadcaster NHK, 45-year-old Tetsuya Yamagami admitted to all the charges read out to him by prosecutors when his trial began on Tuesday.
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Yamagami was charged with murder and violating arms control laws for allegedly using a homemade weapon to shoot and kill Japan’s longest-serving leader.
“Everything is true,” the suspect told the court, according to AFP news agency.
On July 8, 2022, Prime Minister Abe was shot while giving a speech during an election campaign in western Nara City, and Yamagami was arrested on the spot.
The assassination was reportedly triggered by the suspect’s anger over the relationship between Prime Minister Abe’s Liberal Democratic Party and the Unification Church.
Mr. Yamagami held a grudge against a Korean religious group because his mother had donated 100 million yen to it. Japanese media reported that this gift ruined his family’s financial health.
The Unification Church, which has long been the subject of controversy and criticism and derogatorily refers to its members as “Moonies,” has since faced increased pressure from authorities over bribery charges.
The church’s Japanese members are considered an important source of income.
Following this shooting incident, it was revealed that more than 100 Liberal Democratic Party members had ties to the Unification Church, and public support for the ruling party declined.
After Tuesday’s first court hearing, 17 more hearings are scheduled this year, with a verdict expected on January 21st.
The trial opened on the same day that Abe’s former ally, Liberal Democratic Party leader Sanae Takaichi, the prime minister, and President Donald Trump, who was visiting the United States, held a summit meeting in Tokyo.
Abe, who served as Japan’s prime minister for almost nine years, is regularly mentioned by both sides at public events.
On Tuesday, Takaichi presented President Trump with Abe’s golf putter and other golf memorabilia during a meeting at Akasaka Imperial Palace.
