The Nara District Court sentenced to Tetsuya Yamagami, 45, to life imprisonment on Wednesday for the murder of Shinzo Abe three and a half years after he committed the crime. Yamagami pleaded guilty at the trial’s opening last October.
Tetsuya Yamagami being disarmed | Wikimedia
The Assassination of Shinzo Abe
On the morning of July 8, 2022, Yamagami gunned down the former prime minister as he gave a speech in Nara Prefecture. The suspect was quickly detained at the scene. After Yamagami was taken away, paramedics arrived to find Abe lying unconscious with blood all over his shirt. Frantically flown to Nara Medical University Hospital via helicopter, he was pronounced dead five and a half hours after he’d been shot.
Yamagami claimed that his family’s financial ruin, caused by his mother’s donation’s to the Unification Church, fueled his grudge against the politician. Abe’s ties to the church — whose practices were deeply embedded within the far-right wing of Japan’s political establishment — became a flashpoint for public outrage. His assassination exposed the organization’s toxic influence on Japan’s political landscape.
Tetsuya Yamagami Apologizes to Akie Abe
Speaking during the 14th hearing of his trial in Nara District Court, Yamagami said, “It’s undeniable that I caused Akie Abe and Abe’s family members pain for the past three and a half years because of the murder, even though I didn’t hold a grudge against them.” He added, “I’ve lost family members myself, so there is no excuse. I’m deeply sorry for what I did.”
Prosecutors described the assassination as a “grave act,” that warranted a life sentence. They added, “We must not allow copycats to emulate the defendant’s offense.” The defense team, on the other hand, felt life imprisonment was too severe. During the closing address at court, they argued that a tragic upbringing caused by illegal donations was “directly linked to the motive for the crime,” and that the defendant was “a victim of religious abuse.”
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Updated On January 21, 2026
