An ex-cop and three others with Aum Shinrikyo ties who were arrested earlier this month over the 1995 shooting of the National Police Agency chief were released Wednesday after prosecutors gave up on charging them due to lack of evidence.
The Tokyo District Public Prosecutor's Office was unable to file charges against the four because they lacked sufficient evidence to sustain a case against them, investigative sources said.
Although the Metropolitan Police Department still believes the cult was behind the shooting of then NPA chief Takaji Kunimatsu and plans to continue its investigation along this line, the prosecutors' decision is likely to prompt police to launch a fundamental review of their probe into the 9-year-old case.