Gunman pleads guilty to killing Japan’s Ex-PM Shinzo Abe
The trial of Tetsuya Yamagami opened on 28 October 2025 at the Nara District Court in western Japan, where he formally pleaded guilty to the murder of former prime minister Shinzo Abe.
Yamagami, aged 45, admitted in court that the charges were “all true” when asked to enter a plea. He is accused of shooting Abe on 8 July 2022 during an election speech in Nara, using a homemade firearm.
Investigations revealed his motive stemmed from personal grievance. Yamagami believed Abe had ties with the Unification Church, and claimed his mother’s substantial donations to the group caused his family’s financial ruin.
Japan, which experiences extremely rare gun-violence incidents, was shaken by the assassination of its longest-serving prime minister. The trial is expected to conclude in December, with a verdict anticipated on 21 January 2026.
