Man who assassinated ex-Japanese PM Shinzo Abe gets life in prison

TOKYO: A Japanese court sentenced a man who admitted to assassinating former Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe to life imprisonment on Wednesday. The case has revealed decades of cosy ties between Japan’s governing party and a controversial South Korean church.

Tetsuya Yamagami, 45, was earlier admitted to killing Abe in July 2022 during his election campaign speech in the western city of Nara.

Abe, one of Japan’s most influential politicians, was serving as a regular lawmaker after leaving the prime minister’s job when he was killed in 2022 while campaigning in the western city of Nara.

It shocked a nation with strict gun control.

Yamagami pleaded guilty to murder in the trial that started in October. The Nara District Court announced Wednesday that it had issued a guilty verdict and sentenced Yamagami to life in prison, as prosecutors requested. Takashi Fumimoto, one of the defence lawyers, said the decision did not take into consideration their request for clemency and was “regrettable,” adding that Yamagami’s legal team would consider an appeal after consulting with him.