On March 20th 1995, members of the Aum Shinrikyo cult placed containers of nerve gas in five Tokyo subway cars during the morning rush hour. As many as 6,000 people were exposed to the gas, and more than 3,000 flocked to hospital emergency rooms as word of the attack leaked out. When it was over, 12 people were dead, and a handful more had sustained permanent brain damage. The Japanese authorities later learned that the cult had carried out a similar attack the previous year, resulting in seven deaths. Aum Shinrikyo turned out to be a relatively large, sophisticated and well-financed operation staffed by highly trained people study ing germ and chemical warfare.
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