Police on Monday turned over to prosecutors their case against three rail traffic controllers over the 2005 derailment of an East Japan Railway Co. express train caused by strong winds that killed five passengers and injured 33 in Yamagata Prefecture.

Accusing the JR East controllers of professional negligence resulting in death and injury, the police said they should have halted the train in light of reports that strong winds had affected operations on a different line nearby.

The prosecutors will examine the case, focusing on whether it was possible for the controllers to predict the accident, in the face of persisting views that the weather was to blame.

In April last year, a transport ministry panel issued a report saying JR East should not be blamed for its failure to instruct the driver to reduce speed because wind gusts that develop locally are hard to observe with a gauge.

The police, for their part, acknowledged that while the bad weather at the time was one of the factors behind the disaster, the controllers should have taken account of other factors, including frequent reports of strong winds and the issuance of a blizzard warning at that time.

The police have determined the accident could have been prevented if the controllers had halted trains by evaluating various factors.

The six-car Inaho No. 14 express was heading for Niigata from Akita when it derailed on the evening of Dec. 25, 2005, with 46 people on board. The first three cars jumped the embankment and fell over.