Elderly driver who killed two people and injured nine in 2019 dies in prison

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

Iizuka was 93 years old when he died on October 26, sources said.

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

Nine others were injured.

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

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

The case brought attention to traffic accidents in Japan caused by mistakes by older drivers.

In a lawsuit filed by the relatives, the 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 unfortunate for him to go to prison and then lose his life. Traffic accidents don’t make anyone happy. I would like to continue my activities to reduce the number of traffic victims and perpetrators of crimes in society.”

He added, “If (Iizuka) ever meets my wife and daughter, I would like him to say sorry to them. I have no stronger feelings than that right now.”

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

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

Iizuka reportedly responded, “Please tell them to surrender their driver’s license as soon as possible.”

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

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