A man under the influence of quasi-legal herbs slammed his car into pedestrians Tuesday evening in Tokyo's bustling Ikebukuro district, injuring seven people, police said.
Three of the victims sustained serious injuries, while a woman was thrown into a state of cardiac arrest.
The driver was taken into custody after the car struck a telephone booth on a sidewalk near JR Ikebukuro Station at around 8 p.m., police said.
The man's name wasn't immediately released. He was identified as a 37-year-old manager of a restaurant.
Police quoted the man as telling investigators that he had inhaled "dappo herbs," or quasi-legal herbs containing cannabis-like ingredients.
Witnesses were shocked to see pedestrians knocked down before their eyes.
"I jumped out when I heard a big bang, and saw people who appeared unconscious, lying on the ground," said a 25-year-old employee at a fast-food restaurant near the site of the crash. "Some were bleeding."