THE ASAHI SHIMBUN
October 19, 2024 at 12:50 JST
A man in his late 40s was taken into police custody after he hurled several crude firebombs at the Tokyo headquarters of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party and used his car to ram the protective barrier set up in front of the prime minister’s office.
There were no reports of injuries arising from the incident that occurred around 6 a.m. on Oct. 19.
The suspect was identified as Atsunobu Usuta, 49, of Kawaguchi, Saitama Prefecture, just north of Tokyo. He was arrested on suspicion of interfering with the duties of public officials after he also lobbed a flare at police officers on duty near the prime minister’s office.
During a campaign speech in Satsuma-Sendai, Kagoshima Prefecture, on Oct. 19, Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba said, “We believe that democracy should absolutely never bend to an act of violence such as this.”
According to investigative sources, Usuta threw several Molotov cocktails in the direction of the LDP offices in Chiyoda Ward.
There was an unconfirmed report that a motor vehicle caught fire.
He drove off and then tried to penetrate the blockade outside the prime minister’s office.
Usuta was refusing to answer police questions, sources said.
Several plastic containers were found in his abandoned car.
About 10 police and fire department vehicles converged on LDP headquarters after the firebomb incident.
A 65-year-old man who lives nearby said sirens sounded from around 6 a.m.
LDP Secretary-General Hiroshi Moriyama issued a statement expressing “strong anger” over the incident as it occurred during the middle of the Lower House election campaign.
Moriyama vowed that nothing would be allowed to disrupt the democratic process, adding that he issued instructions to law enforcement authorities around the nation to thoroughly implement security measures, especially during campaign speeches in public venues.
FATHER TALKS TO ASAHI
In the meantime, Usuta’s 79-year-old father talked with a reporter from The Asahi Shimbun and explained that his son had been involved in the anti-nuclear movement until about 2012.
He said his son camped outside the Oi nuclear plant in Fukui Prefecture to express his opposition to Kansai Electric Power Co.’s decision to resume operations.
More recently, the father said his son began to express criticism of an electoral system requirement that prospective candidates put up deposit money.
The son claimed the requirement prevented him from running for office and sought to abolish the rule. Deposit money is not returned unless a candidate garners a certain number of votes.
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Police officers outside the Tokyo headquarters of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party after firebombs were thrown early on Oct. 19. (Shiori Ogawa)
