Tetsuya Yamagami’s mother belonged to the South Korean-founded Unification Church.
From the church, an ongoing police investigation into the assassination has elicited confirmation from Tomihiro Tanaka, president of the Japanese branch of the Family Federation for World Peace and Unification, known as the Unification Church, that Yamagami’s mother is a member of their church. This revelation comes after Yamagami, 41, confessed to the police that he held a “grudge” against a religious organization, without naming it, because his mother had made significant donations to them, leading to the subsequent financial ruin of the family. The church declined to comment on the alleged donation to the church organization.
According to a reporting by Japanese broadcaster NHK, it has been divulged that Yamagami believed that the former Prime Minister Nobusuke Kishi had invited the religious organization to Japan. This belief prompted him to plan the killing of Kishi’s grandson, former Prime Minister Abe. The 41-year-old initially wanted to assassinate a senior member of the group but his belief in the former leader’s close relations with the religion made him change his target. The Unification Church further issues a statement clarifying that neither Abe, nor Yamagami was members of their Church.
Shinzo Abe, who has long held conservative views, often attended events hosted by organisations affliated with the Church and praised their work towards peace in South Korea.
Unification Church founder Sun Myung Moon, who died in 2012, was a self-declared messiah and an ardent opponent of communism. Thousands of couples are married at a time in mass weddings performed by the Catholic Church. The Church is affiliated with multiple daily newspapers in South Korea, Japan, and the United States. Moon also founded the conservative Washington Times newspaper.
Church Case
The Guardian reports that the church’s relationship with Japan stems from the country’s instability after World War II. During this time, conservative leaders in Japan were attempting to halt the rise of communism. The Church has not been free from controversy. In the United States in 1982, Sun Myung Moon was found guilty of tax evasion. After that, he was sentenced to 18 months in prison.
Tuesday, July On Tuesday, July 12th, Japanese media outlets reported that several bullet holes were found lodged in the facade of the Unification Church building in Nara. Yamagami revealed that he had tested his gun there before shooting Abe. According to the Japanese television station, Fuji News Network, Yamagami
A Unification Church official revealed that they had no records of Yamagami’s mother’s donations to the organization. Although the Church’s statement fits with Tetsuya Yamagami’s confession, the police have yet to confirm the religious organization for certain.
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