TOKYO: The man suspected of killing former Japanese premier Shinzo Abe with a handmade gun on Friday could have made the weapon in a day or two after obtaining readily available materials such as wood and metal pipes, analysts say.
“The making of guns with a 3D printer and the manufacturing of bombs can nowadays be learned off the Internet from anywhere in the world,” said Mitsuru Fukuda, a Nihon University professor specialising in crisis management and terrorism.
“It can be done in two to three days after obtaining parts such as pipes,” said Fukuda, who analysed images of the gun used in Abe’s shooting.
Video images showed the assailant fired at Abe with a device that had a pistol grip and what appeared to be two pipes covered in black electrical tape.
Police arrested a 41-year-old man at the scene and said he had admitted shooting Abe; the suspect was later identified as Tetsuya Yamagami.
“Anyone with a basic understanding of how guns work could have made it with minimum knowledge,” said firearms commentator Tetsuya Tsuda, adding that it may not even have taken half a day to manufacture the weapon used in the attack.
Japanese media said on Saturday the suspect had told investigators he had searched online for instructions how to make firearms, and ordered parts and gunpowder on the Internet as well.
The gun measured 40cm by 20cm and was made of materials such as metal and wood, officials from the Nara prefectoral police told reporters on Friday.
Police did not rule out the possibility that the bullets were also made by hand but said they were still investigating. — Reuters
