Police said Sunday night they have arrested a 26-year-old man after he hit a 65-year-woman riding a minibike with his car and dragged the woman along for about 1.5 kms in Kawaguchi, Saitama Prefecture.
According to police, the incident occurred at around 10 p.m. Saturday at an intersection. TBS reported that the woman on the minibike, identified as Noriko Iguchi, was stopped at a red light when she was hit from behind.
The car hit another vehicle and kept going with Iguchi apparently wedged beneath it. The driver of the second vehicle contacted police who rushed to the scene. Iguchi's body was found on the road about 1.3 kms away, TBS reported. She was taken to hospital but was pronounced dead on arrival, police said.
Police said the suspect, Daiki Matsumura, who works at the Kawaguchi ward office, turned himself in at a police station on Sunday afternoon. He was quoted as saying he had been drinking alcohol before the incident.
© Japan Today
17 Comments
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Disillusioned
So, don't tell me, another drunken scumbag eluding responsibility for his recklessness.
WilliB
Wow, brutal. I hope they catch the perp soon.
inverse
Just curious, what's a minibike? Google tells me that it's a miniature motorbike, but I was also picturing one of those collapsible bicycles.
Not that it matters of course, it's a heinous thing that happened to her either way.
khulifi
He will say he can not remember driving ... and will go free.
timeon
inverse, I think the term applies for bikes less than 50 cc, which may be scooters, or those minibikes the post office delivery guys use.
WilliB
I agree; by "minibike" the writer probably means "gentsuki bike". The post office bikes have 90cc by the way.
mayabe
Too bad.. RIP
SenseNotSoCommon
Yet another civil servant?
B.B.Q.Demon
Dragged 1.3 km? Nasty. Murder one. Book 'em Dano.
Carcharodon
I had a browse the Japanese sites are describing it as a 原付バイク - Gentsuki baiku which is a "Scooter" a 50cc, step-thru, a vespa, a moped. Minibike? I have never heard that term to describe a scooter - a mini bike is a miniature version of a full sized motorbike, often not street legal - though the "Honda Z" a.k.a the "Monkey", is a famous street legal mini bike.
Post office ride full size delivery bikes.
Odds are that this old lady like thousands of other middle aged and elderly ladies in Japan was on a 50cc scooter. The ones that follow the law and ride at the supposed maximum of 30kph are actually putting themselves in more danger than the ones who go flat out and try to go at the same speed of the traffic flow. Though in this case, stopped at the lights and ploughed over by this drunken idiot and dragged to her death? He is going for away for quite a while and R.I.P lady. Wrong place at the wrong time.
BurakuminDes
Rest in Peace to the poor lady. As for the social misfit who killed her, I'm hoping he cops a minimum of 40 years and is banned from any future taxpayer-funded welfare, pension or healthcare when he is released.
Strychnine
My prayers go out to the family of that poor lady.
sensei258
Acting with "reckless disregard for human life" (as in driving while drunk) could bring a murder charge in the US. But this is Japan, and he's a city official (although a stupid young one), so he'll get the minimum with much time of for good behavior and a sincere apology to her family.
Carlos Godoy
I believe a mini bike is a electrically motorized scooter which is street legal. No license required.
Sensato
TV Asahi said the woman was riding a gentsuki baiku (原付バイク), or 50cc moped/scooter.
Link: http://news.tv-asahi.co.jp/news_society/articles/000030578.html
WilliB
Carlos Godoy:
No. Gentsuki bike means the engine displacement is 50cc. I don´t know if they have electric scooters yet; once they come on the market, they will have to find an equivalent way to classify them, probably by output horsepower.
Nessie
They need to crack down on hops, that loophole herb.