Accused assassin of Japan's Shinzo Abe undergoes mental evaluation

July 25 (UPI) -- Authorities on Monday began conducting a psychiatric evaluation of the man accused of assassinating former Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe.

Prosecutors had called for the review of Tetsuya Yamagami, 41, on Friday, which could take months. Physicians will evaluate his life history and check for the presence of mental disorders.

Yamagami arrived at the Osaka Detention House on Monday about one hour after leaving a police station in Nara City. He is accused of shooting Abe during a campaign speech for a parliamentary candidate on July 8.

Yamagami had told police that he held a grudge against Abe for what he believed to be support for a religious organization. The Family Federation for World Peace and Unification, formerly known as the Unification Church, has confirmed Yamagami's mother is a member.

"If a mental disorder likely caused by his background and family environment is found, it will affect a determination of the appropriate punishment," Tomoyuki Mizuno, a criminal law professor at Hosei University Law School and a former judge, told Asahi Shimbun.

"I assume prosecutors want to understand Yamagami's capability of behavior control and judgment of what is right and wrong."

Abe, 67, Japan's longest-serving prime minister, was in office from 2006 to 2007 and again from 2012 until September 2020, when he resigned due to health issues.