NARA šC The man accused of fatally shooting Shinzo Abe in 2022 apologized in court on Thursday to the former prime minister¡¯s widow, Akie, and his family for the first time.
¡°It¡¯s undeniable that I caused Akie Abe and Abe¡¯s family members pain for the past 3? years because of the murder, even though I didn¡¯t have a grudge against them,¡± Tetsuya Yamagami, 45, told the Nara District Court
¡°I¡¯ve lost family members myself so there is no excuse (for my acts),¡± he said, his voice quivering. ¡°I am deeply sorry for what I did.¡±
Thursday was the last of the five court sessions in which he was scheduled to testify.
Akie Abe attended Yamagami¡¯s court session for the first time on Wednesday under a system that allows for victims¡¯ participation during trials. She was absent on Thursday.
On Wednesday, Abe entered the courtroom at 1 p.m. wearing a black jacket with a blue ribbon badge, which is a symbol of efforts to rescue Japanese nationals abducted by North Korea decades ago. After Yamagami took the witness stand for questioning at around 3 p.m., he bowed deeply to the former prime minister¡¯s widow, and she bowed slightly.
During the hearing, prosecutors asked the defendant about why he changed his target from leaders of the Unification Church, which he reportedly held a grudge against, to the former prime minister. Akie Abe did not pose questions to Yamagami.
Yamagami said that he believed his purpose in life was to get back at the religious group, and that Shinzo Abe was not his primary target. However, he added that he could not wait for Unification Church leaders to come to Japan for he might end up being financially strapped. As such, he made a rushed decision to attack the former prime minister in their stead.
The defendant also said that the time and energy he spent making homemade guns would have been in vain if he did not use them.
Yamagami is on trial for killing the former prime minister with a homemade gun in Nara in 2022.
The victim participation system allows victims and bereaved families in major incidents to participate in criminal trials. They can directly ask witnesses and defendants questions and express their opinions on the severity of sentences.
During a court hearing last month, the prosecution read a statement from Akie Abe about her feelings about a year after her husband¡¯s death. ¡°The sorrow of losing a husband will not be relieved,¡± she said in the statement. ¡°I just wanted my husband to stay alive.¡±
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