An elderly driver who killed 2 people and injured 9 in 2019 dies in prison

Kozo Iizuka, a former senior official at the Industry Ministry who killed a mother and her daughter in a horrific road accident in Tokyo in 2019, has died in prison.

Sources say Iizuka was 93 years old when he died on October 26.

On April 19, 2019, the car Iizuka was driving ran a red light and hit 31-year-old Mana Matsunaga and her 3-year-old daughter Riko as they were crossing an intersection.

Nine others were injured.

Iizuka initially blamed a mechanical failure, but in 2021 the Tokyo District Court ruled that he accidentally and repeatedly pressed the accelerator pedal instead of the brake pedal.

He was sentenced to five years in prison for negligent driving resulting in death or bodily harm.

The case drew attention to road accidents in Japan caused by the mistakes of older drivers.

In a lawsuit filed by the grieving family, the district court ordered Iizuka to pay 146.6 million yen ($951,700) in damages.

Takuya Matsunaga (38), who lost his wife and child in the accident, told reporters on November 25: “It must have been very sad for him to go to prison and then lose his life. Road accidents make no one happy. I would like to continue my efforts to reduce the number of road accident victims and perpetrators of crimes in society.”

He added: “If (Iizuka) ever meets my wife and daughter, I would like him to apologize to them. I don’t have any stronger feelings right now.

In March, Matsunaga conveyed his feelings to Iizuka through a prison employee. This led to a prison meeting in May.

Matsunaga said he asked Iizuka if he had any message for the elderly and their families.

Iizuka reportedly replied, “Please tell them to return their driver’s licenses as soon as possible.”

After hearing the news of Iizuka’s death, Matsunaga told reporters, “I would like to use his experiences and words as nourishment for my future actions.”

(This article was written by Taro Ono and Shoko Mifune.)