A secretary to House of Councilors member Yasuhiro Tsuji of the Democratic Party of Japan was arrested here Friday for allegedly driving without a license, police said.

Kimihiko Fukunaga, 32, was involved in a collision with a minivehicle driven by an 18-year-old university student at around 8 a.m. Friday, police said. He was arrested after a police officer who witnessed the accident asked Fukunaga to show his license and discovered that it had expired in late September.

Investigators also found that the compulsory safety inspection certificate for Fukunaga's car had expired in May, the police said.

Tsuji, 46, expressed surprise at his secretary's arrest and offered an apology over the matter.

The accident occurred near Fukunaga's house in Kobe's Kita Ward, they said.