Japan Ground Self-Defense Force (GSDF) chief of staff Yasunori Morishita bows to apologize at a press conference at the Ministry of Defense in Tokyo on June 14, 2023, after a shooting incident occurred earlier in the day with SDF soldiers at a training range in Gifu prefecture. (PHOTO / AFP)

TOKYO — A Ground Self-Defense Force (GSDF) recruit was referred to prosecutors Thursday on suspicion of murder a day after shooting three of his instructors during a live-fire training in central Japan, killing two of them.

The recruit, an 18-year-old male, was arrested at the site after allegedly opening fire at three GSDF personnel during the indoor exercise at the force's shooting range in Gifu prefecture on Wednesday morning, the GSDF said.

The incident left a 52-year-old instructor and a 25-year-old man dead, and another 25-year-old man hospitalized, according to the police

The incident left a 52-year-old instructor and a 25-year-old man dead, and another 25-year-old man hospitalized, according to the police.

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Investigative sources said the suspect told police that he targeted the 52-year-old instructor and "didn't intend" to kill the other victim who stood between himself and the 52-year-old and blocked his way.

The training session involved approximately 120 personnel, including some 70 recruits. Its purpose was for them to acquire expertise in utilizing a commonly employed assault rifle, and it was the fifth and last drill for the suspect, according to the GSDF.

Further details, such as personal relations between the recruit and the victims, are being investigated, the GSDF said.

In a press conference on the day of the shooting, General Yasunori Morishita, chief of staff of the GSDF, said the trainee joined the GSDF in April and belonged to the same regiment as the three senior personnel in charge of training.

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"As an organization that handles weapons, such things should never happen," said Morishita.