Tokyo, Oct 28 : A man charged for assassinating former Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe in 2022 pleaded guilty on Tuesday, in his first court hearing since the fatal shooting that shocked the nation and drew attention to Unification Church and its connection to political leaders, local media reported.

During the hearing at the Nara District Court, Tetsuya Yamagami said, "It is true. There is no doubt that I did it." Yamagami (45) is accused of killing Abe with a handmade firearm during an election stump speech in Japan's Nara on July 8, 2022.

The defence has insisted that the personality and behaviour of the accused were shaped by an upbringing marked by religious abuse. The defence counsel has insisted that Yamagami's mother, a follower of the Unification Church, donated 100 million yen to the group. She is among 12 witnesses who will testify before the court's ruling on January 21.

During the hearing, prosecutors said Yamagami had resentment against the Unification Church after his mother became the group's follower and shot Abe, thinking that shooting him will result in group facing "attention and criticism."

Prosecutors have argued that the crime's repercussions were "unprecedented" in postwar Japan and insisted that the difficult upbringing of the defendant should not be used to justify a "substantially reduced sentence."

Kyodo News reported citing investigative sources that Abe was targetted since his grandfather Nobusuke Kishi, who has also served as Japan's PM, helped introduce the group, which was established in 1954 by a staunch anti-communist in South Korea to Japan.

Tetsuya Yamagami has also been indicted for damaging building by conducting test-firing and breaching laws that regulate explosives, firearms and the manufacturing of weapons.

The Unification Church has come under intense attention due to its ties with members of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party, which was led by Abe previously. The church, famous for its predatory fundraising practices, faces dissolution after court's order to disband, which has been contested by the group.

Shinzo Abe, Japan's longest-serving leader, died at the age of 67 after being shot while delivering a stump speech in Nara in 2022. Abe was born into a prominent political family and served as a secretary for his father, former Foreign Minister Shintaro Abe, before being elected to the House of Representatives in 1993. He served as Japan's PM between 2006 and 2007 and assumed office again in 2012. After nearly eight years, he stepped down from the post after facing health problems.

/IANS