TOKYO (TR) – Tokyo Metropolitan Police have arrested a secretary for Hiroshige Seko, the Minister of Economy, Trade and Industry, for allegedly striking a male taxi driver in Nakano Ward early on Saturday, reports Nikkan Sports (Feb. 18).
At around 2:15 a.m. Daisuke Kawamura, a 60-year-old secretary for Seko, is alleged to have repeatedly punched the driver, aged in his 50s, in the face as he exited the cab near the West Exit of JR Higashi-Nakano Station.
According to the Nakano Police Station, Kawamura, who was drunk, paid the fare prior to the incident. After the assault, the driver apprehended the suspect while a passerby alerted police.
Police have not revealed motive for the attack or whether the suspect admits to the allegations.
Seko offered an apology to the driver of the taxi over the incident. “According to a lawyer, he has deeply reflected upon the matter,” the minister told a press corps, according to the Nikkei Shimbun (Feb. 18).
