Last year, in an accident in Suginami Ward, Tokyo, a mother and a first-year elementary school student were hit and killed by a car that had left an auto repair company's store.The mechanic who was driving the car pressed the brake and accelerator at the same time. It was learned through interviews with investigators that there is a suspicion that The Tokyo District Public Prosecutors Office indicted the mechanic on charges of negligent driving causing death.
The person indicted is Kota Urushihara (50), a mechanic.
The accident occurred in December last year when illustrator Chihiro Sugimoto (43) and her daughter Nagi (6), a first-year elementary school student, were walking on a sidewalk in Suginami Ward when they were struck by a passenger car that was reversing out of an auto repair company's store. He was hit and died.
Urushibara was arrested, but he was later released and the Metropolitan Police Department continued its investigation on its own initiative.
As a result, footage from the drive recorders of cars driving in the area at the time of the accident revealed that the car was crashing into the car at a speed of over 20km/h with its brake lights on, and that the mechanic was pressing the brake and accelerator at the same time. This suspicion was revealed through interviews with investigators.
The Tokyo District Public Prosecutors Office indicted the mechanic on charges of negligent driving resulting in death, claiming that he had also stepped on the accelerator by mistake, which led to the accident.
In response to previous investigations by the Metropolitan Police Department, he has given statements admitting this situation.