The defense team for Yamagami Tetsuya, who was sentenced to life in prison for killing former Prime Minister Abe Shinzo, said on February 4 that they filed an appeal against the ruling.

On January 21, the Nara District Court handed Yamagami a life sentence for fatally shooting Abe with a homemade pipe gun in Nara, western Japan, in July 2022 as the politician delivered an election campaign speech.

The prosecution had requested life imprisonment for the 45-year-old defendant, while the defense had asked that the prison term be capped at 20 years.

Major points of contention in the trial included whether to consider the influence of his mother’s large donations to a religious group which ruined the family as a factor in the sentencing.

The court determined that the family situation did not have a significant impact on his decision to kill, noting that there is a considerable leap between his background and the act of murder.

Another issue was whether the handmade gun could be considered a weapon equivalent to a handgun under the firearms and swords control law, and the court recognized it as such.

The defense counsel said they have been discussing with Yamagami whether to appeal and that the defendant has given his consent to proceed.

They said the appeal was filed to obtain an opportunity to correct what they deem to be an unjust ruling.

The case will now move to the Osaka High Court for further proceedings.