crime

6 arrested for drift racing in Chiba

29 Comments

Police on Wednesday arrested six men for drift racing near Makuhari Messe in Chiba Prefecture. According to police, the six used mobile phone mails that said "It's show time" to signal to each other to begin the activities.

Kazuya Hanajima, 36, and five vocational school students in their 20s were arrested on charges of vandalizing train cars in July and violating traffic laws. The Makuhari area is known as a "sacred ground" for drifting.

All six arrested admit to the charges. One was quoted as saying, "We wanted to show off our skills to the gallery."

Since January, the group of six has been drifting every week, for a total of 193 times, police said.

© News reports

©2024 GPlusMedia Inc.

29 Comments
Login to comment

What the h@ll is drifting? Bit more info please.

0 ( +0 / -0 )

I think it's some kind of motorsport? I have no clue. I googled it:

From wikipedia-- Drifting refers to a driving technique and to a motor sport where the driver intentionally oversteers, causing loss of traction in the rear wheels through turns, while preserving vehicle control and a high exit speed. A car is said to be drifting when the rear slip angle is greater than the front slip angle prior to the corner apex, and the front wheels are pointing in the opposite direction to the turn (e.g. car is turning left, wheels are pointed right or vice versa), and the driver is controlling these factors. As a motor sport, professional drifting competitions are held across the world.

From how stuff works-- "Drift racing" was born on the winding mountain roads of Japan in the 1990s, and it has been spreading to the United States and the United Kingdom for the last five years or so. A simple drift has a car moving sideways through a single turn, but it can get much more complex than that. At the pro level, drivers can drift through several opposing turns without their wheels ever gripping the road. That's where the winding mountain roads come in -- aside from the death factor, mountain roads are ideal drifting courses. The multiple, tight, S-type turn configurations allow drivers to display the most advanced drifting skills."

...okay.

0 ( +0 / -0 )

6 arrested for drifting in Chiba

This article in its entirety does not shed light to a common person on what it really is al about. May u pliz shed some more light for the sake of some who are no DRIFTING fans

0 ( +0 / -0 )

Check out the movie Fast and the Furious: Tokyo Drift. Pretty much explains it.

0 ( +0 / -0 )

Drifting is sliding the car around a corner using accelerator and clutch. Tough to master. Makuhari messe is not a haven, hasn't been for a long time... Other places are much more popular. If japan provided more legal circuits/practise areas this illegal stuff would stop quite quick in the majority cause regular road surfaces are not good for this sport.

0 ( +0 / -0 )

“It’s show time” now show your skills with a toothbrush and clean the rubber you left on the tar.

0 ( +0 / -0 )

Wow and I thought they were fishing or something. Usually even a brief story would have a phrase in the sentence to indicate to the unknowing what they are talking about. Well done JT in reporting that minute little detail. NOT!

0 ( +0 / -0 )

oh darn, i wanna go see them do it. that's very spectacular. makuhari is known for its wide streets and lack of traffic and pedestrians at night so its perfectly safe. jcops are just abusing their power again. hope they will do it again. i think they could have easily outrun the jcops and their stock toyota crowns.

0 ( +0 / -0 )

I am NOT a fan of the drifting scene; cars with noisy fart-can mufflers and cheap plastic skirts... but the Japanese car culture is far more interesting than what is going on in the U.S.

0 ( +0 / -0 )

Illegal drifting continues because the J-cops have a serious lack of balls to get out there and stop it! I know a certain seaport that is very popular for drifting after dark and the cops avoid it like they're terrified of the young punks (which they probably are).

0 ( +0 / -0 )

I would like to see this. The movie Tokyo Drift was rubbish but the cars are cool. How did they manage to vandalise a railway car?

0 ( +0 / -0 )

Since January, the group of six has been drifting every week, for a total of 193 times

I'm curious to know why it took 192 earlier incidents to spur the police to finally crack down on these six on the 193rd.

0 ( +0 / -0 )

I had a very slow van once, and up on the roads near Hakone, the drifters loved to pass me. Was fun to watch but dangerous. Lots of cars get messed up.

0 ( +0 / -0 )

There is absolutely nothing wrong with street drifting or mountain drifting (touge). It's usually done late at night in industrial areas, docks or up in the mountains. These unlucky gentleman were the victims of bumbling keystone cops who should be out catching real criminals.

0 ( +0 / -0 )

"There is absolutely nothing wrong with street drifting or mountain drifting (touge)."

There is when you're doing it on public city streets or public mountain roads, and someone gets injured or killed as a result of your horsing around.

These unlucky gentlemen were victims of their own selfish stupidity.

0 ( +0 / -0 )

These guys usually choose areas that are free of people, everyone on the scene knows that at present 2 certain mountain roads in gunma are popular. The locals know it, cops know it but let it slide so long as when a "regular" car enters the road no one drifts. (they really stay in touch using 2-ways) These areas in makuhari can't be used much now cause lots of new apartment buildings. Youll know when the drifters are going through makuhari cause one car will go through slow and loud to draw off any cops or report none around and "the fun will commence"

0 ( +0 / -0 )

Looks like a lot of fun, but should of course be conducted in a safe manner. If these guys want to go risking their lives then so be it, but not at the expense of risking others.

0 ( +0 / -0 )

stupid cops. these guys are actually really safe about the drifting. they have spotters above and below the piece of asphalt they plan on ripping up. j cops are sooooo useless.

funny, the article says the police said that they had been doing it since January a total of 193 times and what? this is the only time you've managed to catch them. were u idiot LAW ENFORCERS at the top of the hill with counters in ur hands.

0 ( +0 / -0 )

"drift racing"

Isn't this a frivolous waste of gasoline?

0 ( +0 / -0 )

The cops should simply approve an area for drift racing and sell drift racing permits. Everybody wins.

Racers don't have to sneak around. Area is clear of pedestrians. Cops make some money to cover the program.

0 ( +0 / -0 )

What is the official retirement age for drifting? I would think that a 36 year old man would have toddlers at home and would be concerned that is recklessness could cause injury or death to himself and others. Also, how can these drifters consider this as a "show our skills" event when there are no emergency services like paramedics and fire teams standing by in the event of a crash? What do they do, just leave the scene when one of their own wipes out? I don't call this drifting, its reckless behavior with total disregard for safety.

0 ( +0 / -0 )

Drift Racers are just a (faster) form of Otaku. Fact.

0 ( +0 / -0 )

LFRAgain: number plates are tricky here..

0 ( +0 / -0 )

If anyone wants to know all about Drifting in Japan there's an expert over on Gaijin pot goes by the handle of KansaiBen

0 ( +0 / -0 )

"Isn't this a frivolous waste of gasoline?"

Yes, it is. ( I can answer my own questions if no one else does )

0 ( +0 / -0 )

Here's hoping all those street Drift Racers write off their cars very soon - and don't kill any innocent people in the process.

0 ( +0 / -0 )

You guys are really to conservative for me . Go drifting !!!!

0 ( +0 / -0 )

Since January, the group of six has been drifting every week, for a total of 193 times, police said.

Wow thats good work there police, allow it to happen for nearly 10 months and when you have nothing else to do (and want to increase the arrest rate) you go and arrest them. New government so you want to make out you are doing a good job to secure your budget.

0 ( +0 / -0 )

Login to leave a comment

Facebook users

Use your Facebook account to login or register with JapanToday. By doing so, you will also receive an email inviting you to receive our news alerts.

Facebook Connect

Login with your JapanToday account

User registration

Articles, Offers & Useful Resources

A mix of what's trending on our other sites