The shooting death of former Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe is causing controversy in a nation where gun violence is uncommon. Here is what we know as a result of press accounts and official declarations.
What took place?
Abe was shot from behind at a distance of about three meters on Friday as he was starting a campaign speech in the western city of Nara (10 feet).
There were two shots fired. Later, security guards tackled a man to the ground. He was dressed in khaki pants, a face mask, and a gray t-shirt.
Who fired the shots?
Tetsuya Yamagami, 41, a former unemployed member of the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force, or navy of Japan, has been named as the shooter. Yamagami is being investigated for murder after it was confirmed that Abe had died. He served with the force from 2002 to 2005, according to NHK. According to the Asahi Shimbun newspaper, he was most recently employed in Kyoto Prefecture as a forklift operator.
The suspect has said what?
According to Kyodo, the suspect admitted to police that he had originally intended to attack the head of a sect because he thought the woman’s large-scale donations to the group had led to his mother’s bankruptcy. He also harbored animosity toward Abe, claiming to police that the former prime minister had supported the sect in Japan, according to the report. He further stated that there was no political undertone to the shooting.
According to investigators, the suspect followed Abe to other campaign events, including one on July 7 in Okayama, perhaps in an effort to locate a location where an attack might be possible. According to NHK, he arrived at the shooting location in Nara at least an hour before Abe started speaking.
What tool did he employ?
The police claimed that the 20-centimeter-tall, 40-centimeter-long homemade weapon was. A close-up of the weapon on the ground revealed what appeared to be two tubes bound by black tape.
According to investigators, the suspect claimed the weapon could fire six rounds at once, according to a report in the Yomiuri Newspaper. According to Yomiuri, officials discovered what might have been stray fragment holes lodged in a campaign vehicle parked about 20 meters away from where Abe was.
How are the police currently acting?
At the residence of the suspect, police found numerous additional guns that were also homemade. Additionally, explosives specialists were called to the scene out of concern that the handcrafted weapons might suddenly explode.
After Abe’s death on Sunday, the suspect’s initial charges of attempted murder were changed to murder.
