06-05-2025
Driver arrested at scene of Yokosuka crash that injured eight
A 31-year-old man was arrested Monday at the scene of a major multivehicle crash in the city of Yokosuka, Kanagawa Prefecture, that injured eight people, including children.
The driver, a resident of Osaka's Naniwa Ward, was taken into custody on suspicion of drunken driving after a breathalyzer test showed his blood alcohol level was approximately three times the legal limit. He has admitted to the charges.
The crash occurred around 11:20 a.m. on a prefectural road in Yokosuka, near the Yokosuka-chuo Station, amid heavy Golden Week foot traffic. The driver's car first rear-ended a stationary bus before veering into the opposite lane and colliding with several vehicles, including a second bus and a taxi. In total, nine vehicles were involved and 10 people were taken to the hospital, with eight, including two children, suffering minor injuries.
Dashcam footage and eyewitness accounts described the car barreling through a red light at high speed, forcing pedestrians to leap out of the way.
'It sounded like a car was racing — definitely around 70 or 80 kilometers an hour,' one witness told Higashi Nippon Broadcasting.
Another bystander said, 'We were walking across when suddenly the car just flew through the intersection. There was no sign of braking at all.'
Later that night, a man in his 20s who had fled the crash scene turned himself in to police. The man, a resident of Yokohama, admitted to being in the car at the time of the crash but said he 'panicked after the accident and left the scene.' He is under investigation on suspicion of knowingly riding in a vehicle operated by an intoxicated driver, according to an NHK report.
Police are questioning him without detaining him as they work to determine whether he was aware of the driver's condition before the crash.
Authorities continue to investigate how the driver came to drive while heavily intoxicated.
