Off-duty officer killed,
three hurt by Keio train
One policeman was killed and three others were injured, one critically, after being hit by a Keio Electric Railway Co. commuter train, at Komaba Todaimae Station in Tokyo's Meguro Ward late Sunday night.
Police officials said the four were returnin to their dormitory after a drinking party when two of the officers fell from the platform onto the tracks; the two others were struck as they tried to pull them back up.
The off-duty officers belong to a riot squad of the Metropolitan Police Department.
Senior policeman Shingo
Nakamura, 27, was pronounced dead soon after arrival at a nearby hospital,
while Tadafumi Ikeda, 25, also a senior policeman, is in
critical condition.
According to investigations,
the men were hit by the Kichijoji-bound train shortly after
11 p.m. when Ikeda and a 23-year-old officer fell onto the tracks and Nakamura and a fourth policeman tried to rescue them.
The 23-year-old policeman was seriously injured, while the fourth suffered only minor injuries.
The four, were on their way back to their dormitory with two other colleagues after drinking sake at a tavern in Shimokitazawa in Setagaya Ward. The group had gone to the bar after work and were drinking there from about 8 P.M. to 10:40 p.m., investigators said.
Japan Times, April 6, 1999
