Japan Police Chief To Resign Over Abe Shooting
The head of Japan's police agency says he intends to resign over last month's fatal shooting of former Prime Minister Abe Shinzo. The announcement comes following the release of a review of the security at the time of the incident.
Nakamura Itaru said, "The National Police Agency believes it is necessary to steadily implement measures based on the new security requirements under a new system to prevent such an incident from happening again. Today, I conveyed to the National Public Safety Commission my intention to resign, in an effort to revamp personnel affairs."
Nakamura's resignation is expected to be approved at a Cabinet meeting on Friday.
On July 8, Abe was shot while giving a speech in Nara City in western Japan. The National Police Agency suspects there may have been a problem with security arrangements behind the former prime minister.
Nakamura joined the National Police Agency in 1986. He mainly worked in the department of criminal investigations and measures against organized crime. The 59-year-old has been in his current position for nearly a year.
In the wake of the shooting, the agency released the results of a review of security measures. It found flaws in security plans, along with insufficient command and information sharing at the scene. The agency also said that the police failed to notice the suspect approaching Abe.
The government says it plans to drastically review security operations for VIPs and strengthen the agency's involvement with prefectural police. That will be done by revamping security policies for the first time in 30 years.
The head of the Nara Prefectural Police, Onizuka Tomoaki, also conveyed on Thursday his intention to step down.