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Police handed out leaflets at a shopping mall in Ota City, Gunma Prefecture, and asked the public for help on Sunday for any information on the fate of a 4-year-old girl who went missing in 1996.
Yukari Yokoyama is believed to have been abducted from a pachinko parlor in Ota on July 7, 1996. She vanished from a pachinko parlor after wandering off from her father. Police said their only lead is surveillance camera footage of a man wearing sunglasses and a cap walking up and down the aisles of the pachinko parlor without playing for about 15 minutes. At one point, the man is seen talking to Yukari.
Police said that over the years, they have received more than 5,200 tips from the public but none have turned up any solid leads. The leaflets distributed by police also include an artist's sketch of how Yukari might look now, if she is still alive.
Anyone with information that might help police is asked to call 0276-33-0110 or 0120-889-324. There is a reward of 6 million yen for any information that might help police solve the case.
© Japan Today
15 Comments
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Michael Machida
I thought it was the job of the police to solve crimes? Or is it now the public who are not paid to do so?
Gaijinjland
The girl’s long gone. At least the father didn’t leave her in the car at a pachinko parking lot to die. And yeah the police would obviously pay anyone from the public who could provide information to her whereabouts or remains.
Aly Rustom
Their job is basically look at surveillance cameras. that's it. No real work
Lissie Sheeley
I literally registered an account just so I could respond to such a ridiculous comment. How do you think they'll be able to learn anything unless they have input from the public? Cold cases are solved because of publicity and the public becoming involved.
ok1517
After 26 years?
And a sketch of how she might look now?
Too much time has passed, and the sketch won't be of too much help either.
SAME#
I hope the father was charged with at least negligence. Why would you take your kid in a smoking, noisy, filthy place full of weirdos?
It's already bad enough in the first place to go to pachinko but bring a 4 year old there is unacceptable.
shogun36
4 years old, 26 years ago, she'd be about 30 now?
What's the point of re-opening the case.
Either she's gone, or she's an adult living an estranged life somewhere else, forgetful of her past.
Time to close the door on this one.
nabelito
Exactly right. Who on earth is down voting you? Would these people rather folks with valuable information refuse to talk to the police? It's not their job after all, why should they help? No matter that the information might help save lives or bring scumbag criminals to justice. I'd love to hear what kind of genius detective strategies these clowns would come up with.
Michael Machida
If the police did what they were trained to do in 1996, the use of the public today is not needed and by the way, who remembers and by now everyone who knew anything already gave information. No efficient police work in my book.
Rodney
Four year old girls wandering around inside pachinko parlors?
uaintseeme
I'm sorry, but if she hasn't been found yet, she probably never will.
miss_oikawa
What would the non-literal version of this be?
Mocheake
All those tips but still no trace of her at all? I smell North Korea here. Kind of like what happened to Megumi Yokota.