Newsshoko asaharacomic book cafenerve gas attack

Katsuya Takahashi, Last Remaining Aum Shinrikyo Cult Member, Arrested In Tokyo

Fugitive Japanese Cult Member Arrested In Tokyo
Felicity Morse
|

Katsuya Takahashi, the last remaining fugitive of the doomsday cult Aum Shinrikyo, which committed the 1995 nerve gas attack on the Tokyo subway, has been arrested by Japanese police.

The 54-year-old cult member has spent the last 17 years in hiding following the sarin gas attack, which killed 13 people and injured around 6,000. He is suspected of driving a fellow member of the cult to the subway station to release the gas.

Open Image Modal

The last remaining fugitive of the doomsday cult has been arrested

Police stepped up their hunt for Takahashi after catching another suspect, Naoko Kikuchi, earlier in June. Her information revealed that the former bodyguard has been working in Kawaski under an alias.

Although Katsuya Takahashi managed to flee before police arrived, authorities were able to obtain a recent photo of Takahasi.

Open Image Modal

Katsuya Takahashi, center, is driven to Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department after being arrested

It was this picture that finally led to the Aum cult fugitive's arrest, after a coffee shop employee recognised Takahashi in his comic book cafe in downtown Toyko.

Open Image Modal

Takahashi had changed his appearance over the years to avoid detection. Thousands of copies of the new photo were circulated by police

The fugitive admitted his identity as soon as he was approached by police, according to Japan's public broadcaster NHK.

The 54-year-old, who was a bodyguard for the cult's leader Shoko Asahara, according to AP, has now been taken into custody in Toyko.

Open Image Modal

Shoko Asahara is awaiting execution

Thirteen of Aum Shinrikyo cult members have been sentenced to death for their crimes, while 200 of the cult's members have been arrested.

The "dangerous religion" of Aum Shinrikyo has now splintered into two groups, Aleph and Hikari no Wa. However at its most potent, it claimed to have 9,000 members in Japan, and as many as 40,000 worldwide.

Group members believed that the world would end in a World War III instigated by the United States, which would climax in a nuclear Armageddon. Only members of Aum Shinrikyo cult would survive, following this culmination, which was predicted for 1997.

Katsuya Takahashi Arrested In Toyko

Katsuya Takahashi Arrested
Katsuya Takahashi(01 of11)
Open Image Modal
Katsuya Takahashi, center, a former Aum Shinrikyo cult member, is driven to Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department after being arrested, in Tokyo Friday, June 15, 2012. Police arrested Takahashi, 54, the last fugitive suspected in the doomsday cult's deadly nerve gas attack on Tokyo subways 17 years ago. He was spotted at a comic book cafe in downtown Tokyo earlier in the day. (AP Photo/Kyodo News) JAPAN OUT, MANDATORY CREDIT, NO LICENSING IN CHINA, HONG KONG, JAPAN, SOUTH KOREA AND FRANCE (credit:AP)
Katsuya Takahashi(02 of11)
Open Image Modal
Katsuya Takahashi, a former Aum Shinrikyo cult member, is escorted by police to be transferred to Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department after being arrested, in Tokyo Friday, June 15, 2012. Takahashi, 54, the last fugitive suspected in the doomsday cult's deadly nerve gas attack on Tokyo subways 17 years ago, was spotted at a comic book cafe in downtown Tokyo earlier in the day. (AP Photo/Kyodo News) JAPAN OUT, MANDATORY CREDIT, NO LICENSING IN CHINA, HONG KONG, JAPAN, SOUTH KOREA AND FRANCE (credit:AP)
(03 of11)
Open Image Modal
Journalists stand in front of a comic book cafe where Katsuya Takahashi, a former Aum Shinrikyo cult member, was detained by police, in Tokyo Friday, July 15, 2012. Police arrested Takahashi, 54, the last fugitive suspected in the doomsday cult's deadly nerve gas attack on Tokyo subways 17 years ago, on suspicion of murder. Japanese characters on the cafe read: "Manga, or comic." (AP Photo/Itsuo Inouye) (credit:AP)
(04 of11)
Open Image Modal
People look at a comic book cafe, center in background, where Katsuya Takahashi, a former Aum Shinrikyo cult member, was detained by police, in Tokyo Friday, July 15, 2012. Police arrested Takahashi, 54, the last fugitive suspected in the doomsday cult's deadly nerve gas attack on Tokyo subways 17 years ago, on suspicion of murder. Japanese characters on the cafe read: "Manga," or comic, left," and "Internet, right." (AP Photo/Itsuo Inouye) (credit:AP)
(05 of11)
Open Image Modal
People at a station in Osaka, western Japan, watch a TV screen showing an image of Katsuya Takahashi, a former Aum Shinrikyo cult member, before being transferred from Kamata Police Station to Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department following his arrest in Tokyo Friday, June 15, 2012. Police arrested Takahashi, 54, the last fugitive suspected in the doomsday cult's deadly nerve gas attack on Tokyo subways 17 years ago. He was spotted at a comic book cafe in Kamata, downtown Tokyo, earlier in the day. (AP Photo/Kyodo News) JAPAN OUT, MANDATORY CREDIT, NO LICENSING IN CHINA, HONG KONG, JAPAN, SOUTH KOREA AND FRANCE (credit:AP)
(06 of11)
Open Image Modal
People at a station in Osaka, western Japan, watch a TV screen showing an image of Katsuya Takahashi, a former Aum Shinrikyo cult member, being driven to Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department after his arrest in Tokyo Friday, June 15, 2012. Police arrested Takahashi, 54, the last fugitive suspected in the doomsday cult's deadly nerve gas attack on Tokyo subways 17 years ago. He was spotted at a comic book cafe in downtown Tokyo earlier in the day. (AP Photo/Kyodo News) JAPAN OUT, MANDATORY CREDIT, NO LICENSING IN CHINA, HONG KONG, JAPAN, SOUTH KOREA AND FRANCE (credit:AP)
(07 of11)
Open Image Modal
People at Osaka Station in Osaka, western Japan, receive extra newspapers reporting the arrest of Katsuya Takahashi, the last fugitive suspected in the doomsday cult's deadly nerve gas attack on Tokyo subways 17 years ago, Friday, June 15, 2012. Police arrested Takahashi, 54, a former member of Aum Shinrikyo cult, after he was spotted at a comic book cafe in Tokyo earlier in the day. (AP Photo/Kyodo News) JAPAN OUT, MANDATORY CREDIT, NO LICENSING IN CHINA, HONG KONG, JAPAN, SOUTH KOREA AND FRANCE (credit:AP)
(08 of11)
Open Image Modal
Police officers stand guard at Kamata Police in Tokyo where Katsuya Takahashi, the last fugitive suspected in a doomsday cult's deadly nerve gas attack on Tokyo subways 17 years ago, was taken in Friday, July 15, 2012, after he was arrested at a nearby comic book cafe earlier in the day. Takahashi, 54, a former member of Aum Shinrikyo cult, was arrested on suspicion of murder in the 1995 attack, which killed 13 people and injured more than 6,000. (AP Photo/Itsuo Inouye) (credit:AP)
Katsuya Takahashi(09 of11)
Open Image Modal
This wanted sketch released by Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department shows Katsuya Takahashi, a former member of Aum Shinrikyo cult. On Friday, June 15, 2012, Japanese police have arrested Takahashi, 54, the last fugitive suspected in the doomsday cult's deadly nerve gas attack on Tokyo subways 17 years ago. He was spotted at a comic book cafe in downtown Tokyo earlier Friday. (AP Photo/Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department via Kyodo News) JAPAN OUT, MANDATORY CREDIT, NO LICENSING IN CHINA, HONG KONG, JAPAN, SOUTH KOREA AND FRANCE (credit:AP)
Katsuya Takahashi(10 of11)
Open Image Modal
This June 4, 2012 combination image taken from video footage of a surveillance camera released by Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department shows Katsuya Takahashi, a former member of Aum Shinrikyo cult, is seen at a bank in Kawasaki, near Tokyo. On Friday, June 15, 2012, Japanese police have arrested Takahashi, 54, the last fugitive suspected in the doomsday cult's deadly nerve gas attack on Tokyo subways 17 years ago. He was spotted at a comic book cafe in downtown Tokyo earlier Friday. (AP Photo/Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department via Kyodo News) JAPAN OUT, MANDATORY CREDIT, NO LICENSING IN CHINA, HONG KONG, JAPAN, SOUTH KOREA AND FRANCE (credit:AP)
Katsuya Takahashi(11 of11)
Open Image Modal
In this image taken from a June 4, 2012 security camera video and released by Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department Thursday, June 7, 2012, Katsuya Takahashi, the last remaining fugitive of the Aum Shinrikyo cult wanted as murder suspects in the 1995 sarin nerve gas attack on Tokyo subways, visits his office in Kawasaki, west of Tokyo. Thousands of police were mobilized Friday, June 8, to hunt for Takahashi suspected in the deadly nerve gas attack, which killed 13 people and injured more than 6,000. (AP Photo/Kyodo News) JAPAN OUT, MANDATORY CREDIT, NO LICENSING IN CHINA, HONG KONG, JAPAN, SOUTH KOREA AND FRANCE (credit:AP)
Suggest a correction
|
Submit a tip