Unlicensed Kurdish Teen Sentenced Over Fatal Hit-and-Run

Japan Forward

18-07-2025

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On July 17, the Saitama District Court sentenced a 19-year-old man from Turkey to five years in prison for a fatal hit-and-run. Prosecutors had sought a seven-year term. Living in Kawaguchi City, Saitama Prefecture, the man was driving without a license when he struck a moped in September 2023, killing one teen and seriously injuring another. He fled the scene after the crash. The defendant was found guilty of unlicensed, negligent driving causing death and injury, as well as fleeing the scene in violation of the Road Traffic Act.
Presiding Judge Kenichi Emi remarked, "The reckless driving led to a grave outcome."
According to the court ruling, the incident occurred around 11:35 PM on September 23, 2023, at an intersection on a city road in Maekawa, Kawaguchi. The defendant hit a moped carrying two teenage boys and fled without stopping.
Both victims were Japanese residents of Kawaguchi. The 17-year-old, a construction worker who was driving the moped, died in the early hours of the following day. Meanwhile, the 16-year-old passenger, a high school student, suffered a severe head injury and has remained unconscious for nearly 10 months.
The court heard that the defendant had borrowed the car from a relative. He had been driving around with two friends for about an hour before the accident. As he approached the intersection, he saw the traffic light turn yellow and accelerated to beat the signal.
When the light turned red — approximately 35.5 meters before the stop line — he was traveling at about 95 km/h, more than three times the legal limit of 30 km/h. He entered the intersection at that speed, resulting in the collision.
The moped had also entered the intersection on a red light. However, Judge Emi noted, "Even taking that into account, it would have been difficult for the victims to anticipate a vehicle entering the intersection at around 95 km/h. The accident was not simply a result of carelessness, but of the defendant's reckless driving." Saitama District Court in Takasago, Urawa Ward, Saitama City.
The judge added, "Despite hitting the two victims and sending them flying, the defendant did not slow down and fled the scene. He even asked a relative to claim they had been the one driving. No compensation through voluntary insurance is expected, and the defendant has made no apology to the victims' families. It is understandable that the families are calling for severe punishment. The defendant bears significant criminal responsibility."
The defendant appeared in court wearing a black polo shirt and black pants. He was thin, with a blue tattoo on his left arm. Assisted by a Turkish interpreter, he kept his head down throughout the sentencing and bowed at the end. Both the victims' and the defendant's families were present in the courtroom.
During the previous hearing, the defense claimed in its closing statement that the defendant fled the scene because "as a Kurd, he feared being deported to Turkey and persecuted if caught."
Author: The Sankei Shimbun
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