Tokyo Subway Attack

March 20, 1995

Members of Aum Shinrikyo religious group release sarin gas in five coordinated attacks on Tokyo subways. Thirteen people are killed and thousands more were injured. The motive for the attacks is still unclear, although some speculate that the leader of the group, Shoko Asahara, was trying to distract authorities in order to stall an investigation into his activities. Asahara had been informed of a police raid set to take place March 22. Another possible motive was to start the apocalypse they believed was coming. About 200 members of the group were arrested, many were sentenced to life in prison, and other were executed, including Asahara who was executed in 2018. The members of Aum Shinrikyo were also linked to a failed attempt to release a toxin in a Tokyo train station five days earlier.