Japanese police are expected to soon end their probe into the shooting death of former Prime Minister Abe Shinzo around seven months after the incident.

Abe was fatally shot in Nara City in July 2022 during the Upper House election campaign. Yamagami Tetsuya, a 42-year-old resident of the city, was indicted on murder and other charges in January.

Sources close to the investigation say police have confirmed there is suspicion that one day before the incident, Yamagami fired at a building in Nara that houses a religious group widely known as the Unification Church.

He is also suspected of carrying handmade weapons when he visited Okayama City the day before Abe's shooting, when the former prime minister was campaigning for the election there.

The sources say police have decided to send additional cases against Yamagami to regional prosecutors on suspicion of property damage, illegal possession of weapons and a violation of the Public Offices Election Law, among other charges.

Prosecutors will decide whether to indict him for these allegations.