Man who attacked Japan’s ex-Prime Minister Kishida is convicted and sentenced to 10 years in prison

TOKYO (AP) — A Japanese court on Wednesday convicted a man who threw a homemade pipe bomb at Japan’s former Prime Minister Fumio Kishida at a 2023 campaign event, sentencing him to 10 years in prison, court officials said.

Ryuji Kimura, 25, was found guilty of attempted murder in the April 15, 2023 attack on Kishida at a small fishing port in the western city of Wakayama, as well as four other crimes including violations of laws on explosives and other weapons.

At stake was whether Kimura intended to commit murder.

The Wakayama District Court said in the ruling that Kimura was aware of the potential for a fatality in his attack, according to the Kyodo News agency. The ruling said the attack at an election campaign event was a serious challenge to democracy and posed a significant danger to many people, Kyodo said.

Kimura, at an opening session of the trial in early February, pleaded not guilty to attempted murder, saying he didn’t intend to kill Kishida. He said he was dissatisfied with Japan’s election system and that he only wanted to get public attention by targeting a famous politician.

The then-prime minister was unhurt, but two people sustained minor injuries. Kimura was arrested on the spot.

The attack came about a year after the assassination of former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe during a campaign speech in Nara, another city in western Japan.

Prosecutors said Kimura had a murder intent, noting that the bomb Kimura threw at Kishida was potentially lethal, and demanded a 15-year prison term.

Gun-related crime is rare in Japan because of strict gun control laws, but there has been a series of high-profile knifings and other attacks using homemade guns and explosives.