Police Eying Possibility of Gross Negligence in Investigation of Teenager’s Fall from Building, Killing Passerby Below

The Yomiuri Shimbun

12:58 JST, September 3, 2024

YOKOHAMA — Police are eyeing the possibility of gross negligence in their investigation of a teenager who fell from the roof of a building in Yokohama, hitting a passerby below and subsequently killing them.

The 17-year-old high school student fell from the roof of a commercial building connected to Yokohama Station on Saturday, killing a woman in her 30s walking below.

The teenager was confirmed dead about an hour later while the woman was confirmed dead about four hours later.

According to the police, the teenager is believed to have climbed over an about 2.5-meter-high fence. The woman in her 30s had visited the area with three friends.

Many people visited the site to pray and offer flowers on Sunday. “It pains me to think that it might have happened to me,” said a 31-year-old office worker.