The suspect in former Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's fatal shooting told police he believed Abe's grandfather had brought into Japan a religious group he harbored a grudge against, investigative sources said Monday.
Police suspect Tetsuya Yamagami, 41, had believed unreliable information on the internet prompted him to turn his hostility toward former Prime Minister Nobusuke Kishi against his grandson, who was shot dead during a stump speech on Friday, the sources said.
Yamagami has explained that his mother became a believer of the religious body to which she had made a "huge donation," and his family "collapsed," adding he targeted the longest-serving prime minister of Japan because he believed Abe had ties with the group.
The former member of the Maritime Self-Defense Force has denied that the fatal shooting during a campaign speech in the western city of Nara for Sunday's House of Councillors election was politically motivated, the sources have said.
Tomihiro Tanaka, president of the Japan branch of the Family Federation for World Peace and Unification, widely known as the Unification Church, said Monday at a news conference in Tokyo that Yamagami's mother became a follower of its group around 1998 and that the family suffered financial ruin sometime around 2002.
But he added there were no records of her activities in the organization and whether the group had requested additional donations afterward. Yamagami is not a follower, according to Tanaka.
Tanaka also said that if resentment against the group is proven to have motivated Yamagami to shoot Abe, they will have to "take the situation seriously."
The religious group, known for its conservative beliefs, originated overseas with many followers in Japan and built relationships with politicians worldwide.
Kishi, who served as prime minister between 1957 and 1960, is said to have been involved with founding a political group linked to the religious body, while Abe sent a message to an event organized by another group related to the body last year.
But it is uncertain whether Abe's grandfather invited the group to Japan, and it is believed that overseas believers were engaged in evangelistic activities.
Tanaka denied the group's links to Abe but admitted that the former Japanese premier had sent a video message to its affiliated organization Universal Peace Federation. Both groups were established by the late Korean Rev. Moon Sun Myung, according to Tanaka.
Yamagami has told police he began making guns around spring last year, initially targeting an executive of the religious group. Tanaka said Yamagami had "not directly expressed grudges" to any group members.
On the day of the attack last Friday, Yamagami fired his first shot from around 7 meters behind Abe before taking the second fatal shot from about 5 meters approximately three seconds later, according to investigative sources.
Security camera footage from the day showed that Yamagami had taken a homemade gun out of his bag and approached Abe from behind after he began his speech. Both shots were taken from a firm standing position with both hands on the gun.
While police said they had noticed Yamagami's suspicious movements after the first shot, Chief Cabinet Secretary Hirokazu Matsuno said at a press conference Monday that he had received reports that there were "problems" with security arrangements at the time of the incident.
Related coverage:
Unification Church says Abe shooter's mother is follower
The religious group, known for its conservative beliefs, originated overseas with many followers in Japan and built relationships with politicians worldwide.
Kishi, who served as prime minister between 1957 and 1960, is said to have been involved with the founding of a political group linked to the religious body, while Abe sent a message to an event organized by another group related to the body last year.
But it is uncertain whether Abe's grandfather actually invited the group to Japan, and it is believed that overseas believers were engaged in evangelistic activities.
Tanaka denied the group's links to Abe but admitted that the former Japanese premier had sent a video message to its affiliated organization Universal Peace Federation. Both groups were established by the late Korean Rev. Moon Sun Myung, according to Tanaka.
Yamagami has told police he began making guns around spring last year, initially targeting an executive of the religious group. Tanaka said Yamagami had "not directly expressed grudges" to any of the group's members.
Related coverage:
Abe shooter checked YouTube for how to make homemade guns: sources
Abe killer tested homemade gun at religious group's facility: sources
