KYOTO – A body believed to be that of a child was found Monday in the woods in Kyoto Prefecture, western Japan, amid a massive search for an 11-year-old boy missing for three weeks, police said.
The search has been underway to find Yuki Adachi, a fifth grader at Sonobe Elementary School in Nantan, who went missing after his father dropped him off near the school on the morning of March 23.
The boy’s mother was notified by the school around noon that day that her child had not arrived.
The body, yet to be identified, was found face-up at around 4:45 p.m. Monday about 2 kilometers southwest of the school. It was clad in a navy-blue fleece top and beige pants, with no shoes.
The police had found a pair of black sneakers possibly belonging to the boy over the weekend, investigative sources said. When last seen, he was wearing black sneakers, a black-and-gray fleece top and beige chino pants, and carrying a yellow backpack.
On March 29, the same backpack was found in a mountainous area about 3 km west of the school.
The body showed signs that some time had elapsed since death, and the sex could not be immediately determined. An autopsy is set to be conducted.
AloJapan.com