He served as Home Minister through the Tokyo subway sarin attack of 1995, and drew attention for his personal apology to a suspect falsely accused of poisoning his wife and neighbors with sarin.
Pasca serangan kereta bawah tanah Tokyo pada tahun 1995, ia menarik perhatian atas permintaan maaf pribadinya kepada salah seorang tersangka yang telah dituduh olehnya meracuni istri dan tetangganya dengan sarin.