Aum Supreme Truth Cult Successor Aleph Has Widow, Son of Executed Founder as Officers or Members, Govt Commission Finds

The Yomiuri Shimbun

16:08 JST, September 4, 2025

The Public Security Examination Commission on Wednesday handed down a sixth regulatory action against Aleph, the primary successor organization of the Aum Supreme Truth cult, based on the Law on the Control of Organizations Which Committed Indiscriminate Mass Murder.

The commission officially recognized both the 31-year-old second son and the 67-year-old widow of Chizuo Matsumoto, the cult’s founder who was executed in 2018, as either members or officers of Aleph.

This recognition is in line with the findings of an investigation by the Public Security Intelligence Agency. However, the commission did not approve part of the agency’s request, and limited the recurrence prevention measure to within the scope of the previous ones.

According to the decision by the commission, the second son conveyed to Aleph’s officials via online conferences his intentions about its personnel changes and halting its compensation payments to the victims of its past deadly activities, among other matters. He was also found to have told them not to report Aleph’s revenue-generating activities to the agency. He reportedly provided his hair to its members for a “reincarnation ritual.”

Based on these findings, the commission recognized that Aleph has made decisions in accordance with the second son’s wishes and identified him as its member or officer.

In its request submitted to the commission in July, the agency alleged that the second son calls himself the second “guru” and leads the organization’s management. However, the commission did not make a clear statement about this in its latest action. The commission also declined to accept the agency’s assertion that the second son is Aleph’s “representative” because the commission stated that he is not a member of Aleph’s “joint council” for its management.

As for Matsumoto’s widow, the commission stated that she has received about ¥400,000 a month as a fee to use her paintings since around 2002; that she stays at an Aleph facility in Koshigaya, Saitama Prefecture, and manages it with the second son; and that she attended and spoke at a meeting about the Aleph’s management.

The commission said in its measure that Aleph failed to report the second son and the widow as its members or officers for about 11 years even though Aleph is required to report its members and other data to the agency under the Law on the Control of Organizations Which Committed Indiscriminate Mass Murder. The commission concluded that it is difficult to assess the risk of its committing indiscriminate mass murder.

Due to the sixth measure, Aleph is to be prohibited from making use of land or buildings for non-residential purposes as well as accepting donations from Sept. 21, when the fifth measure is to expire, through March 20 of next year.

However, the commission did not acknowledge the agency’s request for a ban on the acquisition or lease of land or buildings in the 12 prefectures where group facilities are located.

Joji Dando, chairman of the Public Security Examination Commission, said at a press conference held at the Justice Ministry after the announcement of the decision, “As a result of careful review, we concluded this measure was necessary and appropriate.”

An official of the Public Security Examination Commission told reporters: “It’s meaningful that the second son and the widow were confirmed as either members or officers of Aleph. We want to appropriately handle the part of our request that was not accepted.”