The incident occurred in the early hours of Tuesday morning on the well-known Takeshita Street in the shopping and tourist district of Harajuku. The road was closed to traffic over the New Year, largely because of its proximity to the Meiji Shrine, where people make their way to offer prayers on the first day of the new year. The car barreled down the narrow street, which was packed with pedestrians. Police immediately cordoned off the street. The driver fled the scene and eluded arrest for around 20 minutes before police caught him.
Takeshita Street in Tokyo
The 21-year-old man has been detained on suspicion of attempted murder.Tokyo Metropolitan Police opened an investigation into the incident. In the car was discovered a big quantity of kerosene. The suspect, identified as Kazuhiro Kusakabe, declared he was motivated to provide a reaction for the execution of Aum cult members involved years ago in a sarin gas attack on a Tokyo subway.
