Sakamoto family murder
On
October 31,
1989,
Tsutsumi Sakamoto (坂本 堤
Sakamoto Tsutsumi,
April 8,
1956 -
November 4,
1989), a lawyer working against
Aum Shinrikyo, successfully persuaded Aum leader
Shoko Asahara to submit to a blood test to test for the "special power" that the leader claimed was present throughout his body. He found no sign of anything unusual. To prevent the disclosure of this outcome, Aum Members planned to kidnap Sakamoto from the underground (subway) and inject him with a drug. Such is the popular theory. The murder was executed as follows:
On
November 3,
1989, several Aum Shinrikyo members drove to
Yokohama. They included
Hideo Murai, the chief scientist, and
Satoro Hashimoto, a martial arts master, as well as
Tomomasa Nakagawa, carrying a pouch of fourteen
syringes and a supply of
potassium chloride. However, they found no sign of Sakamoto at the train station.
At 3 A.M., the men broke into the apartment through an unlocked door, first finding the Sakamoto's crying infant, 14-month old
Tatsuhiko Sakamoto (坂本竜彦
Sakamoto Tatsuhiko). The boy was injected with a deadly drug and his face was covered with a cloth. The men then surprised Tsutsumi Sakamoto and wife,
Satoko Sakamoto (坂本都子
Sakamoto Satoko), in bed. Tsutsumi Sakamoto was struck on the head with a hammer and his wife was beaten. The two were then injected with the drugs while the husband still struggled. The perpetrators finally subdued the lawyer by strangling him. After the family was dead their bodies were placed in metal drums and hidden in rural areas. Their bed-sheets were burned and the tools were dropped into the ocean. The victims' teeth were smashed to hamper identification.
Background information on Sakamoto's legal practice contradicts the 'blood test' theory. Before organizing a legal campaign to sue Aum Shinrikyo, Sakamoto represented the relatives of Unification Church members in lawsuits against that religious group. Circumstances of this previous case were similar: relatives of people who joined the
Unification Church demanded financial compensations for assets transferred by the relatives to the group and moral damages inflicted by worsened relationships. By organizing a
public relations campaign, Sakamoto apparently sought to demonstrate that Aum members, similar to members of the UC, did not join the group voluntarily but were lured by deception and are probably held against their will by threats. This information could influence the courts to award significant settlements to the relatives of Aum members and thereby bankrupt the group. Sakamoto successfully used this tactic against Unification Church.
In 1988, when the name Aum Shinrikyo was unknown to the majority of Japanese, Sakamoto initiated the establishment of Aum Shinrikyo Higai Taisaku Bengodan ("Coalition of help to those affected by Aum Shinrikyo"). This was later renamed to Aum Shinrikyo Higaisha-no-kai or "Aum Shinrikyo Victims Association". Therefore the blood test posed little threat to Aum, which is probably why Asahara so readily accepted the offer.
According to the defense team of Shoko Asahara, Aum members mentioned above conspired to commit this murder but hid this from Asahara. The jury disagreed and found him guilty. The verdict is currently under appeal.
Aleph, a successor group to Aum Shinrikyo, condemned the above described atrocities in 1999 and announced a change of its policies, including establishment of a special compensations fund. Members involved in incidents such as the Sakamoto family murder are not permitted to join the new organization Aleph and are referred to as "ex-members" by the group.
See also:
Soka Gakkai Victims Association*
Crime Library article on Aum Shinrikyo
