Tokyo, Japan - Russia has about 300 active supporters of the Japanese doomsday sect Aum Shinri Kyo that has on its record murders, kidnaps and the gas attack on Tokyo underground in 1995.
The sect has several bases in Russia, says a report published by the Japanese Public Security Investigation Agency on Friday.
This service is in charge of open surveillance of Aum Shinri Kyo.
The Aum cult, which has changed its name for Alef, has been formally banned in Japan and is constantly watched as a potential subversive group.
The report said its core is about 600 sectarian monks who broke ties with the families and live together in houses of worship.
The group also has about 1,000 supporters who keep high loyalty to their half-blind leader Shioko Asahara.
A court sentenced him to hanging for arranging a series of crimes, but his lawyers are trying to appeal the verdict.
Courts also sentenced to long terms in prison a large group of Asahara’s “apostles”.
The sect preached a near doomsday and called on people to prepare for the last war of Good and Evil.
Work was conducted at Aum’s secret facilities to manufacture war gases and biological weapons.
Aum Shinri Kyo was active in the early 1990s in Russia, where it had several thousand of supporters.