As the longest serving Prime Minister in Japan's history, Shinzo Abe deserved a relaxing retirement. Instead, he was out on the campaign trail for a colleague when an assassin's bullet struck.

But this wasn't a politically motivated kill.

It was actually connected to a global cult-like religion. And a young man whose mother was in too deep.

• Host: Aslan Pahari
• Producer: Hannah Jose
• Audio Engineer: John Jacobs
• Video Producer: Tejas Bhat
• Special thanks: Michael Osmond for archives research
• Supervising Producer: Kyla Slaven
• Executive Producers: Joel Werner, Eric George, Jessica Radburn

To binge even more great episodes of ASSASSINS with Aslan Pahari go the ABC listen app (Australia) or wherever you get your podcasts. There you'll find more stories of the world's most shocking assassinations — from the lone wolf hitman to the professional assassin, you'll hear how famous figures like Abraham Lincoln, Benazir Bhutto, Ramses III, Tupac and Gandhi met their end.