A man charged with assassinating former Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe in 2022 pleaded guilty on Tuesday, as his long-awaited trial began three years after the fatal shooting, Kyodo News reported.

The accused, 45-year-old Tetsuya Yamagami, admitted to killing Abe, Japan’s longest-serving postwar leader, using a homemade firearm during a campaign speech in the western city of Nara.

The Nara District Court said it will hold multiple hearings through December before delivering its verdict on January 21.

According to Kyodo News, Yamagami told investigators he carried out the attack due to a deep grudge against the Unification Church, which he blamed for his family’s financial collapse.

His mother reportedly donated about 100 million yen (around USD 650,000) to the group, leaving the fa

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