Tetsuya Yamagami, the man accused of murdering former Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, is transferred from the Nara Nishi police station for psychiatric examination in Nara on July 25, 2022. STR / AFP
The gunman accused of killing Japan's former prime minister Shinzo Abe pled guilty Tuesday, three years after the assassination in broad daylight shocked the world.
The slaying forced a reckoning in a country with little experience of gun violence, and ignited scrutiny of alleged ties between prominent conservative lawmakers and a secretive sect, the Unification Church.
"Everything is true," Tetsuya Yamagami said at a court in the western city of Nara, admitting murder of the country's longest-serving leader in July 2022.
The 45 year old was led into the room by four security officials. When the judge asked him to state his name, Yamagami, who was wearing a black T-shirt and had his long hair tied at the back, replied in a barely audible voice. However, his lawyer said they would contest certain charges including violations of arms control laws for allegedly using a handmade weapon.
