Photo/Illutration Ryuji Kimura is brought to the Wakayama District Public Prosecutors Office on April 17, 2023. (Yuki Shibata)

WAKAYAMA--The suspect accused of lobbing a pipe bomb at the feet of then Prime Minister Fumio Kishida in Wakayama in April 2023 denied any intent to kill him in court testimony here on Feb. 4. 

Ryuji Kimura, 25, who is unemployed, is accused of five charges including attempted murder and violating the Public Offices Election Law. 

The first hearing of the lay judge trial for the suspect was held at the Wakayama District Court.

Kimura said that he “did not intend to kill” at the court. He also said that he “did not know that Kishida was campaigning at the time” regarding the charge of violation of the Public Offices Election Law.

Regarding the manufacture and possession of the explosive device, Kimura said, “I did not intend to harm anyone.”

The defense team admitted that Kimura had injured two people including an audience member at the site, but argued that he was only guilty of injury, not attempted murder.

According to the indictment and other sources, on April 15, 2023, Kimura tossed a pipe bomb that he had made at his home in Kawanishi, Hyogo Prefecture, and other places at Kishida at the Saikazaki fishing port in Wakayama.

Kishida was giving a campaign speech there in front of a crowd of spectators. The pipe bomb exploded about 50 seconds later. Kishida was not injured, but an audience member and a police officer sustained minor injuries.

The prosecutors pointed out in their opening statement that this was “an indiscriminate act of terrorism targeting an incumbent prime minister and affecting those around him.”

The attack on the prime minister, which followed the fatal shooting of former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe in Nara the previous year, prompted a major review of campaign security and dignitary protection measures.

The trial focuses on whether the defendant had the intent to kill and the motive that led to the incident.

The prosecutors are expected to argue that Kimura had the intent to kill Kishida and others, since he made a explosive device capable of killing and detonated it at the speech venue.

They are also expected to call experts on explosives to prove the dangers of the explosive device at the trial.

Kimura remained silent during the investigation, so investigators were unable to ascertain the circumstances of the case or his motive.

It has also been revealed that during the investigation, prosecutors repeatedly insulted the defendant, calling him a “shut-in,” a “negative influence on society,” and “replaceable,” which the Supreme Public Prosecutors Office acknowledged to be inappropriate.

Sources said while Kimura admitted that he had visited the site and thrown an object, he will dispute the indictment, including whether the explosive device had the capacity to kill and injure, and whether he intended to interfere with the election campaign.

The trial will be held for three consecutive days until Feb. 6 and is scheduled to conclude on Feb. 10, with the verdict to be handed down on Feb. 19.

(This article was written by Shinichi Kawarada and Takefumi Horinouchi.)

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