Life Sentence for Man Who Shot Former PM Shinzo Abe

By Barrier Free Japan, Jiji

January 21 2026

NARA – Tetsuya Yamagami, who fatally shot former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, was sentenced to life imprisonment on Wednesday 21st January, three and a half years after the killing Abe in Nara.

The Nara District Court’s ruling was consistent with the sentence sought by prosecutors in connection with the July 2022 shooting, in which Yamagami used a homemade firearm.

Prior to the ruling, 685 people gathered outside the court to apply for the 31 available gallery seats, according to the court.