Mother of Abe killing suspect is a Unification Church member, church says

Record ID: 1680482

  • Title: Mother of Abe killing suspect is a Unification Church member, church says
  • Date: 11th July 2022
  • Summary: COLOMBO, SRI LANKA (JULY 11, 2022) (REUTERS) PEOPLE WALKING AROUND SRI LANKAN PRESIDENT GOTABAYA RAJAPAKSA'S RESIDENCE VARIOUS OF CROWD WAITING TO ENTER MORE OF PEOPLE WALKING VARIOUS OF ARMED SOLDIERS STANDING AT ENTRANCE TO PRESIDENT’S RESIDENCE 5 . (SOUNDBITE) (Sinhala) PROTEST LEADER AND NATIONAL ORGANISER FOR YOUTH FOR CHANGE, LAHIRU WEERASEKERA, SAYING: "People wil
  • Embargoed: 25th July 2022 08:37
  • Keywords: Japan Shinzo Abe Unification Church assassination former Japanese prime minister news conference police suspect suspect's mother
  • Location: TOKYO, NARA, JAPAN
  • City: TOKYO, NARA, JAPAN
  • Country: Japan
  • Topics: Asia / Pacific,Crime/Law/Justice,Crime
  • Reuters ID: LVA002094711072022RP1
  • Aspect Ratio: 16:9
  • Story Text: The mother of the man arrested for the killing of former Japanese prime minister Shinzo Abe was a member of the Unification Church, the church's Japan head said on Monday (July 11).
    Tetsuya Yamagami, an unemployed 41-year-old, was identified by police as the suspect who approached Abe and opened fire during a campaign speech on Friday (July 8), an attack that was captured on video and shocked a nation where gun violence is rare.
    Yamagami believed Abe had promoted a religious group to which his mother made a "huge donation," Kyodo news agency has said, citing investigative sources. Yamagami told police his mother went bankrupt from the donation, the Yomiuri newspaper and other media have reported.
    Tomihiro Tanaka, president of the Japan branch of Family Federation for World Peace and Unification, known as the Unification Church, told reporters at a briefing in Tokyo that Yamagami's mother was a member of the church.
    Tanaka declined to comment on her donations, citing the ongoing police investigation. Neither Abe nor the man arrested for his shooting were members of the church, Tanaka said. Abe was also not an adviser to the church, Tanaka said, adding the church would cooperate with police on the investigation if asked to do so.
    (Production: Tim Kelly, Irene Wang)
  • Copyright Holder: REUTERS
  • Copyright Notice: (c) Copyright Thomson Reuters 2022. Open For Restrictions - http://about.reuters.com/fulllegal.asp
  • Usage Terms/Restrictions: None
Register