21-Year-Old Female Navigator Arrested Over Fatal Cargo Ship Collision

Feb 23, 2026 | News On Japan

MIE, Feb 23, 2026 (News On Japan) - A 21-year-old navigation officer was arrested after a cargo vessel collided with a recreational fishing boat off the coast of Toba, Mie Prefecture, leaving two men dead and multiple others injured.

Police arrested Sugimoto Nami, a navigation officer with Hiroshima-based shipping firm Shinsei Kaiun, on suspicion of professional negligence resulting in death and injury following the accident that occurred shortly before 1 p.m. on February 20th while she was operating the cargo ship Shinsei Maru.

Investigators allege Sugimoto failed to keep a proper lookout ahead while steering the vessel, causing it to collide with the fishing boat Kosei Maru and resulting in the deaths of Yukichi Taniguchi, 84, and another passenger.

The impact of the collision threw 13 people into the sea, including the two victims who later died, while 10 others suffered injuries ranging from minor to serious.

Sugimoto admitted to investigators that she had been at the helm and that the vessel collided with the fishing boat.

The Japan Coast Guard’s Toba office is also questioning the 66-year-old captain of the fishing boat on a voluntary basis as part of its investigation into the circumstances surrounding the crash.

Source: FNN

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