Overview
- Tetsuya Yamagami admitted in court that he shot and killed Shinzo Abe during a 2022 campaign event in Nara.
- House of Councillors lawmaker Kei Sato, who stood beside Abe, testified that he heard two shots and saw the former leader collapse.
- Prosecutors presented investigative evidence including Yamagami’s online searches for “homemade gun” and “pipe gun” and his movements toward a nearby early polling site before the attack.
- The prosecution argues Yamagami targeted Abe to draw attention to the Unification Church after his mother’s large donations, with reporting noting family ties between Abe’s grandfather Nobusuke Kishi and the group’s entry to Japan.
- A coalition of journalists and lawyers urged the court to expand public access to the proceedings to counter persistent conspiracy theories about the killing.