Abe murder suspect’s mother donated $ 718,000 to religious group

Tokyo, Jul 14 (EFE).- The investigation into the murder of former Japanese president Shinzo Abe revealed the suspect’s mother donated some JPY 100 million (more than $ 718,000) to the Unification Church, the religious organization indirectly related to the attack.

Tetsuya Yamagami, the 41-year-old ex-military man arrested for the crime, said during interrogations he attacked Abe thinking he had ties to the group, toward which he had developed a “hatred” after large donations from his mother led her to bankrupt and disintegrate his family.

Abe died Friday after being shot in the back while giving a speech at an electoral event in the city of Nara, in the west of the country, where Yamagami lived.

According to the latest details of the investigation collected by local media, it is estimated that her mother’s donations would amount to about JPY 100 million, from her husband’s life insurance and the profits obtained from the sale of various family properties and land. inherited, public broadcaster NHK said.

At a press conference earlier this week, the head of the Japanese branch of the Unification Church said the detainee’s mother belonged to the organization and had made donations, but did not go into details.

According to a statement sent Thursday to EFE by the organization, “it is not yet known when or how much the donations from the suspect’s mother were, but we have confirmed with the local parish that an agreement was reached for the return of money.”

According to the information provided, from 2005 to 2014 the church returned a total of JPY 50 million, apparently due to “family circumstances.”

According to the testimony of relatives who have spoken with NHK, the woman returned the money to the organization, which has said that she will collaborate with the investigation so that the case “is clarified soon.”

Yamagami said he made Abe a target after seeing a September 2021 video showing the former president at an event of an organization affiliated with the Unification Church. EFE

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