Upbringing of Former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe’s Shooter Did Not Affect Sentencing Decision

The Yomiuri Shimbun

18:11 JST, January 22, 2026

The Nara District Court did not take into consideration Tetsuya Yamagami’s upbringing in its decision to sentence him to life in prison for fatally shooting former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe in 2022.

The court said Yamagami’s criminal act is linked to his upbringing but it did not consider it a factor to determine the sentence, as “committing murder is too much of a leap.”

According to the ruling, Yamagami’s mother joined the Family Federation for World Peace and Unification, formerly known as the Unification Church, when he was in elementary school. As his mother donated large amounts of money to the religious group, his family struggled financially, causing problems within the family.

The ruling said the defendant could not relax at home and noted that it cannot be denied that his upbringing may have led him to cause the incident.

But it also argued that the defendant was already an adult in his 40s when the shooting occurred and was aware that killing people is wrong. It went on to say the defendant chose to continue his plans, even though he had an opportunity to stop when he failed to attack the religious group’s executives.

It said Yamagami targeted Abe because he struggled financially due to such reasons as the cost to make handmade guns, and the COVID-19 pandemic made it difficult to know when the group’s executives would visit Japan.

The ruling criticized the defendant, saying he prioritized his own convenience and was short-sighted and self-centered.

Referring to the defendant’s feelings toward his family and the religious group, the ruling said the defendant did not seek to solve his problems through legal means and the crime was the result of his own decisions.

Generally, sentences are determined by the circumstances directly linked to the criminal acts, such as how they were committed, the person’s motives and their general circumstances, such as a defendant expressing regret and the feelings of a victim’s family. The general circumstances are taken into consideration to some degree but do not significantly affect the outcome.

“The severity of the sentence was not lowered due to his upbringing, so it is believed that the court handled that as a type of general circumstance,” said Prof. Toshiaki Fujii of Nihon University’s law school who is a former chief judge at the Tokyo High Court.

“In light of the danger posed by using a firearm near a crowd and the fact that the defendant failed to give a convincing explanation about why he targeted Abe instead of the religious group’s executives, it cannot be said that the life sentence is too heavy,” Fujii said.

The trial once again highlighted the suffering of the children of Unification Church members, referred to as “second-generation” followers.

The defendant’s mother testified in court that she thought donating to the religious group was more important than her children’s education. The defendant’s younger sister said in court that when she had a high fever, her mother went out for the group’s activities and left her behind.

“It’s quite rare that the details of the suffering of second-generation followers come to light in a public space like a courtroom,” said Susumu Shimazono, a professor emeritus at the University of Tokyo.

“The suffering of second-generation followers has been overlooked for many years, and sufficient measures to help them has yet to be taken,” Shimazono said. “Regardless of the court decision, it will be necessary for society to focus on the issue.”