Hisako Ishii, a former senior member of the Aum Shinrikyo cult, was released from a Wakayama prison early Saturday after completing a term she received for crimes including helping Aum members allegedly involved in the 1995 Tokyo subway gassing evade arrest.
In a statement released to the press at Kansai International Airport before she left for Tokyo's Haneda airport, Ishii, 40, said she feels sorry for the victims of Aum crimes and has no plans to rejoin the cult, which now calls itself Aleph.
Ishii served as a close aide to Aum founder Shoko Asahara.
About 60 Wakayama police officers were mobilized when Ishii left the prison at 5:30 a.m. in a taxi as more than 100 media reporters and photographers waited.