In the early hours of Thursday, police arrested the stepfather of Yuki Adachi, the 11-year-old boy whose body was found in a forested area of Nantan, Kyoto Prefecture, earlier this week. According to NHK, investigators searched the suspect’s home on Wednesday and questioned him on a voluntary basis before arresting him at around 12:30 a.m. in connection with the case.
The suspect, 37-year-old Yuuki Adachi, is accused of abandoning his stepson’s body between the morning of March 23 and around 4:45 p.m. on Monday and has reportedly admitted to the charge. Investigators quoted him as saying, “There is no mistake, I did it.” Police have not yet determined the cause of the boy’s death and are continuing to investigate the circumstances.
Discovery of the Body
The body of the 11-year-old student was found on Monday, about 8 kilometers northeast of the boy’s home and roughly 2 kilometers southwest of Sonobe Municipal Elementary School, which he attended. Authorities said the remains were badly decomposed, indicating that a significant amount of time may have passed since death. The autopsy indicated that the boy died sometime in late March.
The boy was reported missing on March 23. His stepfather initially told police that he drove him to school that morning, but he never arrived in class. The boy’s homeroom teacher notified his mother around noon that he had not shown up, and security camera footage did not capture him entering the school grounds. Six days later, a relative found his yellow backpack in a wooded area about 3 kilometers from the school.
Two weeks passed before another development. On Sunday, police found a pair of children’s shoes in a mountainous area between his home and the school. The body, discovered the following day, was located about 5 kilometers northeast of where the shoes had been found and was not wearing any footwear. He was dressed in a navy-blue fleece top and beige pants.
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Updated On April 16, 2026
AloJapan.com