"Paid 900 Million Yen to the Unification Church"... Testimony of the Mother of Former Japanese Prime Minister Abe's Assassin in Court

[Financial News] The mother of Tetsuya Yamagami, who fatally shot former Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe with a homemade firearm in July 2022, testified that she still maintains her faith in the Family Federation for World Peace and Unification (formerly the Unification Church, hereafter FFWPU).
On the 13th, local media including The Asahi Shimbun reported that Yamagami's mother appeared as a witness at a hearing at the Nara District Court, where she stated, "I still believe in the FFWPU." With a trembling voice, she added, "I sincerely apologize to former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, Mrs. Akie Abe, and the bereaved family," expressing regret for not having apologized sooner after the incident.
About three years ago, Tetsuya Yamagami approached former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe during a House of Councillors election campaign in Nara City, Nara Prefecture, and fired a gun. He reportedly committed the crime because he suspected a connection between Abe and the Unification Church.
According to The Asahi Shimbun, a partition was set up around Yamagami's mother in court, making her invisible to the public gallery. Her son, Tetsuya Yamagami, glanced briefly toward the partition but mostly kept his head lowered.
During the hearing, Yamagami's mother explained that she turned to the Unification Church due to difficult family circumstances. She said that attending morning gatherings helped her cope with the stress caused by her husband's alcoholism. She also mentioned, "It was upsetting that my husband and other family members opposed my leaving the children behind or making donations."
Yamagami's mother became a member of the FFWPU when her son was in elementary school and reportedly donated about 100 million yen (approximately 950 million won), including her late husband's life insurance payout, to the organization. As a result, Tetsuya Yamagami had to give up attending university.
During the police investigation, he stated, "Our lives were ruined by the donations," and explained that he targeted former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe because of his deep ties to the FFWPU.
bng@fnnews.com Kim Hee-sun Reporter