The mother of a university student who died of carbon monoxide poisoning in 2005 accused Paloma Industries Ltd. and parent Paloma Co. of failing to stop unauthorized modifications of their gas-powered water heaters that they knew were defective, as the manufacturer's Tokyo District Court negligence suit opened Thursday.
Yukiko Joshima told the court: "If Paloma's product hadn't been defective, Hiroyuki wouldn't have died. Paloma took away the happiness of our family."
Hiroyuki Joshima, 18, died of carbon monoxide poisoning in November 2005 when he used a modified Paloma water heater at his condominium in Minato Ward, Tokyo. His older brother, Takayuki, was also poisoned and had to be hospitalized for about a month.