Mitaka incident

The Mitaka incident (三鷹事件, Mitaka jiken) was an incident that took place in Tokyo, Japan on July 15, 1949, when an unmanned 63 series train with its operating handle tied down drove into Mitaka Station on the Chūō Line, killing six people and injuring 20.[1] The incident remains a mystery, as do the Shimoyama and Matsukawa incidents which occurred around the same time.

Mitaka incident
Derailed train after the incident
LocationMitaka, Tokyo, Japan
Coordinates35°42′10″N 139°33′39″E
DateJuly 15, 1949
21:23 (UTC+10)
WeaponsTrain
Deaths6
Injured20
PerpetratorKeisuke Takeuchi

The government indicted ten people on a charge of train sabotage resulting in death of the victims, as well as the train's conductor, Keisuke Takeuchi, who was not in the train when it derailed.

History

On the day of the derailment, all four of the police officers at Mitaka Station abandoned their posts; this was never explained. Two of the alleged conspirators were indicted for perjury. Takeuchi's lawyer refused to allow a co-worker to present evidence affirming that he and Takeuchi were in a public bath together when the train left the station (an apparently airtight proof that at least one other person was involved), claiming it was "irrelevant to the case".[1]

In a court ruling in 1955, the judge found there was no evidence of a conspiracy, but rather that Takeuchi had planned and executed the entire incident himself.[2] Takeuchi was sentenced to death; the other defendants were declared innocent of all charges. All appeals of the verdict were rejected. All the acquitted defendants were members of the Japanese Communist Party, but Takeuchi was not. Takeuchi died in jail in 1967 of a brain tumour.[3] Until his death, he continued to proclaim his innocence while in prison for life.[4][3]

In 2010, an article from the Japan Times mentioned that the confession Takeuchi provided was done under duress from the police.[1]

In 2019, the Tokyo High Court denied a request to have a retrial for Keisuke Takeuchi.[2] His son, Kenichiro, mentioned that he was disappointed at the decision.[2]

See also

References
  1. The Three Big Rail Mysteries that Defined Japan’s Summer of 1949
  2. http://www.asahi.com/ajw/articles/AJ201908010064.html Archived on 2 August 2019
  3. "The Japanese National Railways Incidents–Enduring Mysteries from Post-War Japan". 24 May 2015.
  4. 日本労働年鑑　第２４集　１９５２年版
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