LETHAL WEAPON
Chilling moment cops seize NINE barrel shotgun made by Shinzo Abe ‘killer’ as huge arsenal of DIY weapons found in home
COPS have uncovered a chilling arsenal of DIY weapons at the home of Shinzo Abe's alleged assassin - including a nine-barrelled shotgun.
The former Japanese prime minister, 67, died in hospital from wounds to his neck and chest after he was gunned down with a makeshift weapon at a political rally in Nara, Japan on Friday.
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Suspect Yamagami Tetsuya, a veteran of the country's defence forces, reportedly spent months plotting the horror attack.
And a raid of his flat revealed an enormous arsenal of homemade weapons and "explosives".
According to local media reports, the weapons found included both a five and nine-barrelled shotgun - which appeared to be electrically fired.
The 41-year-old suspect told cops he made guns by wrapping steel pipes together with tape, some of them with three, five or six pipes, with parts he bought online, NHK reports.
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Tetsuya didn't attempt to flee the scene after Abe was gunned down and he was immediately detained by police.
He allegedly told cops he "had no choice but to kill".
According to TV Asahi, the suspect had been "systematically preparing for a long period of time".
He reportedly worked as a contract worker at a warehouse in Kyoto, operating a forklift.
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He was described as a quiet person when he started the job - but he soon started ignoring rules which led to rows with his colleagues.
A neighbour said he never met Tetsuya - but claimed he had been hearing noises like a saw being used several times late at night over the past month.
The suspect told the cops he shot Abe because of his rumoured connection to an organisation that he resented.
But the 41-year-old said he had no problem with the former leader's political view.
According to reports, the man had developed a twisted hatred toward a religious group that his mother was obsessed with and that bankrupted a family business.
Chilling footage and photos taken moments before the attack show the navy veteran lurking behind the political podium staring at Abe as he speaks.
He shadows the ex-PM suspiciously, wearing a grey shirt, brown trousers and a white face mask.
Abe's security team were around him, but the gunman was able to draw his weapon and shoot the former statesman at close range "without being checked", local media said.
Nara prefectural police chief Tomoaki Onizuka admitted there were problems with security.
"I cannot deny there were problems with our security," Onizuka said.
"Whether it was a setup, emergency response, or ability of individuals, we still have to find out.
"Overall, there was a problem and we will review it from every perspective."
Mitsuru Fukuda, a crisis management professor at Nihon University, said cops were seen paying little attention to what was happening behind Abe - noting how the suspect approached the former PM unnoticed until he fired the first shot.
Japan has a near “zero-tolerance” of gun ownership and an extremely low rate of gun crime - so the shooting today came as an incredibly rare shock to the nation.
Abe served as Prime Minister for nine years - the country's longest consecutive term - and helped reshape Japan's position on the world stage.
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He had been giving a speech at a campaign event for his former party, the Liberal Democratic Party, as upper house elections in Japan are due to take place later this week.
It was the first assassination of a sitting or former Japanese premier since the days of prewar militarism in the 1930s.
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