20-Year-Old Handsome Moped Hit-and-Run Suspect Says He Didn’t Know a License Was Required—Here’s What Comes Next

Suspected of riding on sidewalk without a license and fleeing after cash

At 8 a.m. on September 10, suspect Ruto Onishi, 20, emerged from the Metropolitan Police Department’s Ikebukuro Police Station. Even wearing a mask with his long bangs hanging down, he was unmistakably handsome. He had a prominent tattoo around his neck and gave off the kind of vibe that would not look out of place on Netflix’s delinquent romance reality show “Love Joto.” When he arrived at Ikebukuro Police Station the previous day, he had seemed relaxed enough to use the window of a police car as a mirror while fixing his hair, but on this day, he appeared somewhat restless.

Onishi, who is unemployed and lives in Itabashi Ward, Tokyo, is suspected of riding a pedal-assisted electric motorcycle known as a moped without a driver’s license, causing an accident that injured a man in his 50s, and then fleeing the scene.

“At around 8:30 a.m. on August 22, Onishi was riding without a license on a sidewalk in Kami-Ikebukuro, Toshima Ward, when he collided head-on with a bicycle ridden by a man. He knocked the man to the ground, causing an injury to his head that was expected to take about two weeks to heal, and then fled the scene. He is suspected of violating the Act on Punishment of Acts Inflicting Injury on Others by Driving a Motor Vehicle, on suspicion of causing injury through negligent driving without a license, as well as violating the Road Traffic Act.

Onishi appears to have been on his way home from a friend’s house. He reportedly said, ‘I didn’t know that I needed a license or that I had a duty to provide assistance,’ and has denied the allegations.

However, according to police, when Onishi purchased the moped from a store around last autumn, he signed an agreement acknowledging the terms of use, which stated that a driver’s license was required to ride it. Police are investigating on the assumption that Onishi had been riding the moped without a license on a regular basis.” (National newspaper crime reporter)

Mopeds have pedals and a thinner frame than conventional scooters, so at a glance they can look like bicycles. However, unlike bicycles, they can be powered solely by their motor. They can be particularly confusing because they also resemble electrically assisted bicycles, but they are completely different. Since they are legally treated as motorized scooters, a driver’s license is required, as is wearing a helmet. They must also have a license plate and compulsory automobile liability insurance. Because they are classified as motorized scooters, riding them on sidewalks is a violation.

There’s nothing more convenient 

An amendment to Japan’s Road Traffic Act in November 2024 explicitly established that mopeds are treated as motorized scooters even when they are being operated solely by pedaling. In fact, they had already been treated this way before the amendment, but with accidents and violations involving mopeds increasing sharply from around 2022, the rules were likely written explicitly into the law once again. Since then, enforcement against mopeds has been stepped up. While the increase in personal injury accidents has slowed—from 57 cases in 2023 to 68 in 2024—the number of violations detected has skyrocketed, from 345 to 2,538.

Munetoku Kumagai, a former traffic investigator and head of a traffic accident investigation and analysis office, explains why policing mopeds is difficult:

“Mopeds have pedals, and when someone is pedaling, they can be extremely difficult to distinguish from an electrically assisted bicycle, which makes it difficult for police officers to stop them. Apparently, some models can now reach speeds of 60 km/h, in which case you would need a motorcycle license rather than just a license for a motorized scooter. However, incorrect information has spread claiming that you can ride them without a driver’s license. From the perspective of someone who doesn’t have a license, there is probably nothing more convenient, which is why people continue to ride them without licenses.

However, if you are caught driving without a license, you can face imprisonment for up to three years or a fine of up to ¥500,000, and you will be prohibited from obtaining a driver’s license for two years. Hit-and-run offenses (violating the duty to provide assistance and the duty to report) carry a penalty of imprisonment for up to 10 years or a fine of up to ¥1 million. In this case, the penalties would presumably be combined, meaning he could be barred from obtaining a driver’s license for five years.

Rather than simply riding one without thinking because it is convenient, you need to properly understand for yourself what is legal and what is illegal. Otherwise, you could end up paying a very heavy price.”

It is only natural that people face consequences for their own actions, but for those who get caught up in such incidents through no fault of their own, the consequences can be devastating.