Five people living in an Aum Shinrikyo cult facility have notified the village of Tokigawa in Saitama Prefecture that they are moving out, sources close to the five said Wednesday.
The group includes the twin daughters of 39-year-old Hisako Ishii, a former Aum follower serving a prison sentence for Aum-related crimes.
According to the sources, the new address of the 6-year-old twins, who were enrolled at an elementary school in the village for only one semester since April, and the others is unknown. The group earlier agreed with village officials to leave the facility by Aug. 20.
The twins' 36-year-old aunt and their 5-year-old sister are among the five who will be leaving, the sources said. By mid-July, two of the nine Aum followers registered as village residents had notified the Tokigawa town hall that they were moving.
In March, the local education board announced they were allowing the twins to attend the school, under pressure from the Education Ministry.
Aum, which renamed itself Aleph in January, is accused of a number of crimes, including the 1995 Tokyo subway gas attack that caused 12 deaths and injured more than 5,000.