Overview

• Police re-arrested 26-year-old taxi driver Tomomitsu Kaneko on August 14 on charges of dangerous driving causing injury after alleging he drove under the influence of cocaine.
• Prosecutors allege Kaneko pursued a private car for about 500 meters before rear-ending a signal-stopped van in Edogawa on July 5, fracturing the 20-something driver’s rib.
• A urine test conducted at the scene detected cocaine, prompting an earlier narcotics arrest and indictment even as Kaneko denies using the drug while admitting to causing the collision.
• Officers noted Kaneko’s odd behavior after the crash, including offering the victim ¥400,000 to drop the report and wearing his T-shirt inside out.
• The case follows a surge in cocaine-related arrests to 586 in 2024 from 188 in 2020 and represents only the second nationwide application of dangerous-driving injury charges for alleged drug impairment.