Aum Shinrikyo figure Noboru Nakamura, who is serving a life prison term for murder, testified Friday against ex-fugitive cultist Makoto Hirata, saying the defendant, despite his denial, had prior knowledge that he would be involved in the 1995 abduction and confinement of a Tokyo notary.
Hirata stands accused of being involved in the kidnapping and confinement of Kiyoshi Kariya, who, according to earlier testimony by convicted cultists, was brutally tortured by members of Aum trying to track down his wealthy sister, who had fled the cult. Kariya is believed to have died in captivity and was cremated. His body was never found.
Hirata is claiming that he knew nothing of the abduction ahead of time, stressing he only drove a getaway car and thought he was actually on a mission to capture Kariya's sister.
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