Prosecutors seek death penalty in trial of cult member

Prosecutors are demanding the death penalty for a former doomsday cult leader who allegedly released deadly nerve gas in Tokyo's subways.

The attack killed 12 people and made thousands ill.

Tomomitsu Niimi, former 'Home Affairs Minister' of the Aum Shinrikyo cult, is being tried on seven counts of murder.

The charges include the 1995 subway gassing and the slaying of a lawyer and his family.

Prosecutors at the trial in the Tokyo District Court said Niimi deserves death, said court spokeswoman Mizuka Oku.

Niimi gained notoriety at the start of his trial in 1996 by refusing to enter pleas and pledging eternal loyalty to Aum guru Shoko Asahara.

He has since reportedly admitted to all charges brought against him except involvement in the subway attack.

Niimi is accused of helping to organize the 1989 strangulation of lawyer Tsutsumi Sakamoto, one of the first people to raise questions about the cult's activities, his wife and son.

Asahara, whose real name is Chizuo Matsumoto, is on trial separately for allegedly masterminding the subway gas attack and other killings. The cult has been trying to mount a comeback and recently changed its name to Aleph.