TOKYO (TR) – Tokyo Metropolitan Police have arrested a 50-year-old man over the alleged theft of a vehicle that he later crashed following a chase by a patrol car, reports TBS News (Sept. 27).
On August 28, Koichi Moriya, an independent businessman living in Miura City, Kanagawa Prefecture, allegedly stole the vehicle while it was stopped with the key in the ignition in front of a convenience store in the Tsukiji area of Chuo Ward.
Officers in a patrol car working off a tip then chased Moriya over a distance of 1.6 kilometers to an intersection in Koto Ward where he ignored a red signal and crashed into another vehicle before slamming into a guardrail.
The driver of the vehicle suffered unspecified injuries, police said.
Moriya, who has been accused of theft, denies the allegations. “I borrowed the vehicle from a friend,” the suspect was quoted by police.
Last week, Moriya was prosecuted for dangerous driving resulting injury.
