Tokyo [Japan], October 28 (ANI): 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 family in debt.

Investigative sources said Yamagami targeted Abe because the former leader's grandfather, Nobusuke Kishi, had helped introduce the Unification Church, founded in 1954 by a staunch anti-communist in South Korea, to Japan.

The trial, which has drawn nationwide attention, saw 727 people queue outside the courthouse on Tuesday morning in hopes of securing one of the 32 public seats available, distributed through a lottery system, Kyodo News reported.

Court documents revealed that before the shooting, Yamagami conducted multiple test firings of his homemade weapons, including near a facility linked to the Unification Church.

He was later indicted not only for murder but also for damaging property and violating laws regulating firearms, explosives, and weapon manufacturing.

The court confirmed that Yamagami underwent a six-month psychiatric evaluation before his indictment, which concluded that he was mentally fit to stand trial.

Witnesses expected to testify include Yamagami's mother, a religious scholar, and a lawmaker who was present during the shooting.

Abe's assassination during an election speech on July 8, 2022, shocked Japan and prompted intense scrutiny of the ties between the Unification Church and politicians, especially members of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party, which Abe once led.

Nara Prefecture, where the shooting occurred, is also the constituency of Sanae Takaichi, Abe's protege who recently became Japan's first female prime minister earlier this month. (ANI)