The failure to protect Abe from the second shooting followed a series of security lapses in the run-up to the July 8 assassination of Japan’s longest-serving prime minister, Japanese and international experts said. Abe’s killing in the western Japanese city of Nara by a man using an improvised weapon shocked a nation where gun violence is rare and politicians campaign in close proximity to the public with light security. Japanese authorities – including Prime Minister Fumio Kishida – have identified security gaps and police say they are investigating. In addition to security experts, Reuters spoke to six witnesses at the scene and reviewed several videos available online, taken from different angles, to compile a detailed account of security measures before Abe was shot. After leaving the 67-year-old Abe exposed from behind as he spoke at a traffic island on a public road, his security elements allowed the shooter — identified by police as Tetsuya Yamagami, 41 — to come within a few meters of Abe unchecked. Yamagami was holding a gun, the footage showed. “They should have seen the attacker walking very deliberately toward the back of the prime minister and intervened,” said Kenneth Bombas, head of Global Threat Solutions, which provided security for Joe Biden when he was running for president. Yamagami came within seven meters of Abe before firing his first shot, which missed, the Yomiuri newspaper reported, citing investigative sources. The second shot, which hit Abe, was heard from about five meters away, it said.
No “safety rings”
Abe’s bodyguards did not appear to have “concentric rings of security” around him, nor any kind of crowd monitoring, said John Soltis, a former US Navy and CIA officer who is now vice president of security firm Prosegur. Asked about the experts’ analysis, the Nara Prefectural Police, which is in charge of security for Abe’s campaign, said in a statement to Reuters that the department was “committed to thoroughly identifying security problems” with Abe’s protection. declining to comment further. The video showed that, after the first shot, Abe turns and looks over his left shoulder. Two bodyguards scramble to get between him and the gunman, one carrying a thin black bag. Two more head towards the sniper, who approaches through the smoke. Tetsuya Yamagami, front right, holding a makeshift weapon, is held after Abe is shot. Japanese authorities, including Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, have acknowledged that security lapses may have led to the assassination. (Nara Shimbun/Kyodo News/The Associated Press) Although Abe’s security confronted the attacker shortly after and arrested him, it was the “wrong response” for some of the police to chase the attacker instead of moving to protect Abe, said Mitsuru Fukuda, a Nihon University professor who specializes in crisis management and terrorism. . There was plenty of security, “but no sense of danger,” said Yasuhiro Sasaki, a retired police officer in Saitama Prefecture near Tokyo. “Everyone was scared and no one went to where Abe was,” he said. The National Police Service, which oversees local police forces, said Abe’s killing was the result of police failures. In response, the agency said it has set up a team to review safety and security measures and consider specific measures to prevent such a serious incident from happening again. “We recognize that there were problems,” the agency said in response to questions from Reuters. “Not only in the response on the ground, such as security and protection organisation, staff deployment and fundamental security procedures, but also how the National Police Service is involved.” Reuters could not reach Yamagami, who remains in custody, for comment and could not determine whether he had a lawyer.
“It could have been avoided”
Footage showed four bodyguards inside guardrails as Abe spoke, according to Koichi Ito, a former sergeant in the Tokyo Metropolitan Police’s special assault squad who is now a security adviser. The number of bodyguards was confirmed by local politician Masahiro Okuni, who was at the scene. When the former prime minister stepped up to speak, Yamagami could be seen on video applauding in the background. As Yamagami walked behind Abe, security did not appear to take action, the video showed. Police inspect the scene where Abe was shot. The killing shocked Japan, where gun violence is rare and politicians campaign in close proximity to the public with light security. (Kyodo News/The Associated Press) Abe should have had a dedicated close-guard bodyguard to escort him out, said a member of the US Diplomatic Security Service, which protects senior diplomats and foreign officials. “We’d grab him by the belt and collar, shield him with our bodies and move away,” the agent said. WATCHES | Crowd pays tribute to former Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe:
The former prime minister of Japan was buried
Thousands of mourners gather outside a shrine where the funeral of former Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe was held. Abe was assassinated while on the campaign trail and investigations are ongoing. Ito, the former police sergeant, said security could have stopped the first shooting if they had been alert and communicating. “Even if they missed it, there was a window of over two seconds before the second shot, so they certainly could have prevented it,” he said. “If Abe had been properly protected, it could have been avoided.”
