In a bus accident in Karuizawa Town, Nagano Prefecture, where 15 people including university students died, the first trial of the president of a bus company and a former employee who were accused of accidental fatal injury was held, and both claimed innocence.

Five years ago, in January 2016, a ski tour bus in Karuizawa Town, Nagano Prefecture, fell to the side of the road without being able to turn the curve, killing 15 passengers and injuring 26.



In this accident, Misaku Takahashi (60), the president of the Tokyo company "ESP" that was operating the bus, and Tsuyoshi Arai (53), a former employee in charge of operation management, were unfamiliar with driving a large bus. He has been accused of accidental fatal injury in business, for example, because he had foreseen that his hand could cause a fatal accident but did not provide the necessary training.



The first trial was held at the Nagano District Court on the 21st, and when asked about the content of the indictment, President Takahashi apologized for the accident at the beginning and said, "The driver was not on a large bus at the previous workplace. I didn't hear it. "



Former employee Arai said, "I didn't expect to have an accident."



Defendants' lawyers alleged innocence, saying, "I didn't realize that the driving skills of the driver who caused the accident were immature enough to ban the business."



In the opening statement that followed, the prosecution said, "Defendant Arai was in the position of an operation manager who complies with the law and was aware of the driver's duties. Defendant Takahashi confirmed that the operation manager would give appropriate guidance as president. I was obliged to do it. "



The trial will continue in the afternoon.

The magnification of the hearing ticket is about 27 times Nagano Distruct Court

At the Nagano District Court, many people lined up for the audience seats from the morning, and according to the court, 266 people wanted to hear the audience seats for every 10 seats, so the magnification was about 27 times.



A 68-year-old man from Nagano said, "I was interested in a ski tour bus accident in Karuizawa because I used to use high-speed buses so often. Will the two defendants plead guilty in the trial? Please pay attention to it. "

17 bereaved families and victims will participate

Yoshinori Tahara (56), who lost his second son Hiroshi in an accident as a representative of the bereaved family association, entered the Nagano District Prosecutor's Office on the morning of the 21st for a trial meeting.



Mr. Tahara wore Hiroshi's keepsake tie on the 21st and thanked the press before entering the building.



According to the lawyer of the bereaved family, a total of 17 people, including the bereaved family and injured victims such as Mr. Tahara, will participate in the trial.

Karuizawa Ski Tour Bus Accident History and Safety Measures Afterwards

The accident happened five years ago, around 2:00 am on January 15, 2016.



On a national highway in Karuizawa Town, Nagano Prefecture, a ski tour bus accelerated to about 95 km / h and fell to the side of the road without being able to turn the curve, killing a total of 15 passengers, including 13 university students and 2 crew members. 26 people were injured.



The Tokyo company "ESP", which operated the bus, did not make a roll call before the departure of the day, and did not create a ledger that records the health condition of the deceased driver. Many violations of laws and regulations related to operation were found.



Following the accident, the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism reviewed bus safety measures.



The audit system for bus companies has been strengthened, the business license of chartered bus companies is renewed every 5 years, the license is revoked if safety measures are insufficient, and if a serious violation is found in the unannounced audit, it operates. It has become possible to take measures such as immediately stopping the bus.



In June 2017, more than a year after the accident, the Nagano Prefectural Police decided to drive a large bus for the president of "ESP" and a former employee who was in charge of operation management, even though he could foresee the possibility of a serious accident. He sent documents on suspicion of accidental fatal injury in business because he neglected to give guidance to an unfamiliar driver.



In addition, regarding the dead driver, documents were sent on suspicion of negligent driving fatal injury, alleging that he had caused an accident due to a gear change operation error.



In response to this, the bereaved family collected signatures for about 47,000 people and submitted them to the Nagano Provincial Prosecutor's Office, saying that it was necessary to clarify the responsibility to prevent recurrence.



The Nagano District Public Prosecutor's Office proceeded with a careful investigation, and in January, five years after the accident, the president and a former employee were indicted at home on charges of accidental fatal injury.



The driver was not charged because he was dead.