Japanese man who threw pipe bomb at ex-PM tells court he did not intend to kill

FILE – A suspect, centre on the ground, is caught by police after he allegedly threw a ‘suspicious object’ as former Japanese prime minister Fumio Kishida visited Saikazaki port for an election campaign event in Wakayama, western Japan (Kyodo News via AP, File)

A man who threw a homemade pipe bomb at former Japanese prime minister Fumio Kishida at a 2023 campaign event denied that he intended to kill the politician as his trial began on Tuesday at a court in western Japan.

Ryuji Kimura, 25, is charged with attempted murder for the April 15, 2023 attack on Kishida at a small fishing port in the city of Wakayama, as well as four other charges including violations of laws controlling explosives and deadly weapons.