Key Facts
• July 15, 2025: Police searched a Saitama apartment linked to Aum Shinrikyo.
• Found: Several million yen in cash; origin under investigation by authorities.
• Apartment residents: Wife and second son of executed cult leader Shoko Asahara.
• March 2025: Public Security Bureau attempted inspection; residents refused entry.
• April 2025: Police conducted search following Bureau’s complaint.
• Aum Shinrikyo splintered into groups: Aleph, Yamada’s Group, and Circle of Light.
• Aleph and others remain under surveillance since 2000 under the Organization Control Act.
• Public Security Bureau has conducted 600 inspections of related groups.
• Shoko Asahara’s second son reportedly named as a successor by the cult.
• Aleph owes over 1 billion yen in damages to victims of the 1995 sarin attack.
Summary
Authorities discovered several million yen in cash during a search of an apartment in Saitama, Japan, linked to the family of Shoko Asahara, the executed leader of the Aum Shinrikyo cult. The search, conducted in April 2025, followed a failed inspection attempt by the Public Security Bureau in March. The apartment is home to Asahara’s wife and second son, who is reportedly being positioned as a successor by Aleph, a splinter group of the cult. Aleph, along with other factions, remains under government surveillance due to its ties to the 1995 Tokyo subway sarin attack. The origin of the cash is under investigation, and Aleph continues to face scrutiny for unpaid damages exceeding 1 billion yen owed to attack victims.
