WASHINGTON – A Navy lieutenant who spent 507 days in a Japanese prison for a fatal car crash while deployed to the largest US naval base overseas will return to the United States after Tokyo agreed to transfer custody to his home country, according to his family.
Lt. Ridge Alkonis was convicted of careless driving causing death after a May 2021 crash in the parking lot of a soba noodle restaurant in the city of Fujinomiya killed two Japanese nationals — an 85-year-old woman and a 54-year-old man.
He has served three years in prison for the collision, which Alkonis claims happened when he passed out while driving due to altitude sickness from the family’s trip up the iconic Mount Fuji earlier that day.
“I felt my body was weak, and my car drifted out of the lane, but I was able to fix it quickly,” he told the judge before the sentencing, adding that he later passed out, according to a report by Stars and Stripes.
But Japanese prosecutors insist that Alkonis fell asleep at the wheel after neglecting his duty to stop while drowsy, resulting in the crash.
Navy Lt. Ridge Alkonis is on his way home to the United States after spending 507 days in a Japanese prison for a fatal car accident. donorbox.org/
Although the 35-year-old sailor will return to American soil soon, it is unclear whether the details of his extradition agreement require him to serve out the remainder of his sentence in a US prison.
In a statement, his family said they were “encouraged” by his return, “but cannot celebrate until Ridge has been reunited with his family.”
“We appreciate the US government’s efforts to effect this transfer and are pleased that a group of impartial judicial eyes will review the case for the first time,” they said. “When the Biden Administration is presented with the full set of facts and circumstances surrounding the case, we are confident they will immediately recognize the absurdity of Ridge’s conviction.”
“We believe that the DOJ will immediately seek to end this miscarriage of justice by immediately freeing Ridge, and we hope that Ridge is enjoying the holidays at home with his wife and children,” they added.
Alkonis claimed he passed out behind the wheel due to altitude sickness from climbing Mount Fuji with his family. wasabimom/Instagram Alkonis was convicted of careless driving causing death after a May 2021 car accident that killed two Japanese nationals in the city of Fujinomiya. wasabimom/Instagram
US service members, federal employees, and their families are regularly briefed on the heightened importance of obeying Japanese traffic laws.
During base orientation, newcomers to the country are taught that they are “ambassadors” for the US – and that any court trouble there could threaten the strength of the US-Japan alliance.
Although it is not unusual for Japan to sentence US personnel convicted in their courts to serve prison terms in that country, the Alkonis family has raised considerable publicity about the incident in the American media, working with lawmakers – including Senator Mike Lee (R- Utah) — and rallied the White House to demand his release.
Derek and Suzi Alkonis hold a picture of their son. AP Photo/Denis Poroy
The effort appears to have been successful, with President Biden raising the case with Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida in a May meeting.
Alkonis was assigned to Yokosuka Naval Base, about an hour south of Tokyo and two hours southeast of where the fatal collision occurred.
He is an acoustic engineering and underwater warfare expert who has spent nearly seven years in Japan as a civilian volunteer and naval officer.
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Source: thtrangdai.edu.vn/en/
