Cult Leader Sentenced to Hang for 1995 Sarin Attack in Japan

A Japanese court today sentenced Aum Shinrikyo cult leader Shoko Asahara to death after convicting him of orchestrating a 1995 sarin attack on the Tokyo subway and other murders, according to the Associated Press (see GSN, Feb. 23).

Asahara was also found guilty of ordering Aum members to produce and stockpile arsenals of chemical and conventional weapons, AP reported. Asahara is the 12th Aum member to be sentenced to hang in connection with the 1995 attack that killed 12 and sickened thousands.

Lead defense attorney Osamu Watanabe said Asahara’s defense team immediately appealed the guilty verdict on the basis that prosecutors ignored testimony showing Asahara was not behind the crimes (Mari Yamaguchi, Associated Press/Yahoo!News, Feb. 27).

The 1995 sarin attack, along with one conducted a year earlier by the cult, prompted the Japanese government to review and improve its antiterrorism measures, Defense Agency Director-General Shigeru Ishiba said today.

“Sarin, a weapons of mass destruction, was used for the indiscriminate terror in Japan. It has a significant meaning,” he said (Kyodo News Service/BBC Monitoring, Feb. 27). 

Back to top
About Newswire  |  Contact National Journal  |  Re-Use Guidelines © Copyright 2008 by National Journal Group, Inc. The material in this section is produced independently for NTI by National Journal Group, Inc. Any reproduction or retransmission, in whole or in part, is a violation of federal law and is strictly prohibited without the consent of the National Journal Group, Inc. All rights reserved.