The psycho behind Japan’s deadliest cult attack was finally put to death on July 6, 2018 — 23 years after Shoko Asahara’s doomsday cult murdered 13 people in a Tokyo subway attack meant to kill thousands! Shinrikyo and six followers were quietly hanged at dawn after decades of appeals while doing time on Death Row. The cult members had brought five plastic bags filled with Sarin, a lethal nerve agent, onto subway trains during rush hour on March 20, 1995. Since the mixture was only 30% pure, however, only 13 passengers ultimately died from the fumes. Hundreds more, however, suffered from being exposed to the chemical warfare agent.
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Shoko Asahara had declared himself to be the reincarnation of Christ, and proudly proclaimed that the terrorist attack was a "holy attempt to elevate the doomed souls of this world to a higher spiritual stage." His murderous Aum Shinrikyo cult (meaning "Supreme Truth") had used cartoons to recruit devotees who gathered all over the world.
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Asahara later became convinced that most of the human race would be annihilated in a coming global war. His church transformed from a peaceful Buddhist sect to a doomsday cult, and Asahara preached that non-believers could only get to heaven if murdered by his followers.
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Disturbingly, the Aum Shinrikyo cult continues to operate under new names in Japan. Some cult members had had operated in America, with Aum Shinrikyo finally designated a terrorist organization in the U.S. after the attacks of Sept. 11, 2001.
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Other members had migrated to Europe, with 58 followers being expelled from Montenegro after being found meeting there in 2016. That same year, Russian officials conducted multiple raids on Asahara's followers in Moscow and other cities. Six more followers of Asahara are still awaiting execution in Japanese prisons.
Shoko Asahara had declared himself to be the reincarnation of Christ, and proudly proclaimed that the terrorist attack was a "holy attempt to elevate the doomed souls of this world to a higher spiritual stage." His murderous Aum Shinrikyo cult (meaning "Supreme Truth") had used cartoons to recruit devotees who gathered all over the world.
Asahara later became convinced that most of the human race would be annihilated in a coming global war. His church transformed from a peaceful Buddhist sect to a doomsday cult, and Asahara preached that non-believers could only get to heaven if murdered by his followers.
Photo credit: Getty Images
Disturbingly, the Aum Shinrikyo cult continues to operate under new names in Japan. Some cult members had had operated in America, with Aum Shinrikyo finally designated a terrorist organization in the U.S. after the attacks of Sept. 11, 2001.
Photo credit: Getty Images
Other members had migrated to Europe, with 58 followers being expelled from Montenegro after being found meeting there in 2016. That same year, Russian officials conducted multiple raids on Asahara's followers in Moscow and other cities. Six more followers of Asahara are still awaiting execution in Japanese prisons.
Photo credit: Getty Images
