Masami Tsuchiya (Aum Shinrikyo)
Aum Shinrikyo senior member and terrorist
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Masami Tsuchiya (土谷 正実, Tsuchiya Masami; 6 January 1965 – 6 July 2018) was a Japanese convicted terrorist and senior member of Aum Shinrikyo, responsible for the deaths of a combined 19 people and for the production of sarin, VX nerve agent, PCP, and LSD.[1] He served in Aum's "Ministry of Health".[2] Prosecutors described him as "the second most important figure involved in the gas attacks by the Aum Shinrikyo cult" after Aum leader Shoko Asahara himself.[3]
Masami Tsuchiya | |
|---|---|
土谷 正実 | |
| |
| Born | 6 January 1965 Chiyoda, Tokyo, Japan |
| Died | 6 July 2018 (aged 53) Tokyo Detention House, Tokyo, Japan |
| Alma mater | University of Tsukuba |
| Known for | Aum Shinrikyo membership and numerous attacks and murders |
Criminal status | Executed by hanging |
| Convictions | Mass murder Terrorism |
| Criminal penalty | Death |
Biography
A native of Chiyoda, Tokyo, Tsuchiya joined Aum Shinrikyo at the age of 26 in 1991 after attending a yoga class, which he took as treatment for whiplash following a car accident.[2] Tsuchiya earned his master's degree in physical and organic chemistry from the University of Tsukuba before fully committing to Aum Shinrikyo.[2]
Tsuchiya was notably loyal to Asahara, describing himself as a "direct disciple of the guru",[4] and referring to Asahara as sonshi (尊師, "honorable master").[1]
Trial and execution
Tsuchiya was charged with seven counts: the 1995 Tokyo subway sarin attack that killed 12 people; the June 1994 sarin attack in Matsumoto, Nagano, that killed seven; three VX gas attacks in 1994 and 1995 that killed one; production of PCP; and harboring Aum fugitives.[4] During the trials, Tsuchiya was notably defiant, insulting the prosecutors and the gallery, and showing loyalty to Asahara.[4]
In January 2004, the Tokyo District Court found Tsuchiya guilty of all charges except for harboring Aum fugitives and sentenced him to death.[4] The presiding judge stated that although Tsuchiya was not directly involved in the attacks, he deserved to die for his "sheer evil".[1] The Tokyo High Court upheld the sentence in August 2006,[5] and the Supreme Court affirmed the ruling in February 2011, concluding that Tsuchiya had played a decisive role in the 1995 subway attack.[6] In response, Tsuchiya said, "Natural result. I wanted to think about what I could do with a lifelong apology."[7]
On 6 July 2018, Tsuchiya was executed along with Asahara and five other cult members.[8]