Teenage driver held in juvenile detention center in fatal crash

Taipei, Oct. 18 (CNA) The case of a 15-year-old boy who drove a car into a small restaurant in Taipei’s Neihu District on Thursday, killing three people and injuring two others, is being handled by the Juvenile Justice Department of the local district court, the police said on Friday.

According to police, the suspect, surnamed Tseng (曾), is being investigated for negligently causing the deaths of the three victims under the Taiwanese Penal Code.

After an investigation, Shilin prosecutors confirmed that the deaths of the three victims were all due to Thursday’s accident.

However, since the boy is still a minor, the police transferred the case directly to the Juvenile Department of the Shilin District Court.

The department decided after further questioning on Friday that Tseng would be held at the Taipei Juvenile Detention Center, which is under the Ministry of Justice’s Department of Corrections.

The results of the investigation will decide how to proceed in the case. Due to the seriousness of the case, he could still go to criminal court, according to the Shilin District Court’s description of how it handles juvenile cases.

At a press conference, Neihu Police Station Chief Inspector Chueh Yu-jen (闕育任) said Tseng was suspected of losing control of the vehicle while driving at high speed without a license.

The accident, which occurred at the intersection of Donghu Road and Ankang Road, killed three people, including a 61-year-old scooter rider and two restaurant patrons aged 51 and 60.

The 40-year-old operator of the restaurant and her 41-year-old employee suffered burns in the accident, but were conscious.

Subsequent breathalyzer and urine tests revealed that Tseng was not driving under the influence of alcohol and had not used recreational drugs at the time, police said.

Tseng lives with his father in New Taipei’s Yonghe District, and authorities said the car the boy was driving actually belonged to his grandfather, who lives in Neihu but is currently abroad.

On Thursday, Tseng went to his grandfather’s house, took the car keys and drove his vehicle away from a parking lot in New Taipei City’s Xizhi district, police said, adding that the boy had planned to return to Neihu to seek refuge to meet his friends the accident happened.

The teenager was immediately arrested and taken for questioning by police, who said his father later arrived at the station after being informed about the matter.