23 years sought for man accused of causing road-rage accident that left couple dead and their childr

Dec 11, 2018 | News On Japan

Dec 11, 2018 (Japan Times) - Prosecutors sought a 23-year prison term for a 26-year-old man on Monday over an alleged road-rage incident near Tokyo last year that left a couple dead and their children injured.

Kazuho Ishibashiâ€™s action was â€œpersistent and malicious,â€ the prosecutors said at the Yokohama District Court, while family members of the victims â€” Yoshihisa Hagiyama, 45, and his wife Yuka, 39 â€” also called for a strict penalty.

Ishibashi was initially arrested on charges including negligence resulting in death and injury, but the prosecutors applied a stricter charge of dangerous driving resulting in death and injury over the incident on the Tomei Expressway in Kanagawa Prefecture on June 5, 2017. Ishibashi has pleaded not guilty.

According to the indictment, Ishibashi was enraged after Hagiyama criticized him for the way he parked his car at an expressway parking area, and chased Hagiyama â€” who was driving with his wife and their two daughters â€” for about 1.4 kilometers before overtaking their vehicle and forcing it to stop in the central overtaking lane.

Ishibashi was trying to drag Hagiyama out of his vehicle when it was hit from behind by a truck, killing the couple and injuring their daughters, it said.

Source: ANNnewsCH

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