FUKUOKA (TR) – Police here have arrested a 52-year-old man on suspicion of driving under the influence after he crashed his vehicle into a waterway while attempting to evade authorities, reports TV Asahi (Sep. 24).
The incident unfolded shortly after 9:00 p.m. on Wednesday at a train station in Miyama City. A woman contacted police to report that she had been involved in a heated altercation with a man about 30 minutes prior.
As responding officers were interviewing the woman at the scene, she spotted the suspect attempting to flee the station’s parking lot in a light motor vehicle.
“That’s him,” she told the officers.
When police attempted to stop the vehicle, the driver sped off, initiating a pursuit. The chase lasted for approximately one kilometer before the suspect lost control of the vehicle and plunged into a local waterway, leaving the front grill of the car stuffed with grass and weeds.
Officers administered a breathalyzer test at the scene, which detected an alcohol concentration well above the legal limit.
The suspect, identified as self-proclaimed self-employed worker Itten Fukuda, was arrested on the spot for drunk driving.
During questioning, Fukuda admitted to consuming a significant amount of alcohol before getting behind the wheel.
“I drank about three go [approx. 540 ml] of shochu mixed with water inside the car,” the suspect told investigators.
