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4-year-old boy found after going missing Saturday in Shizuoka

28 Comments

Police on Monday said they had found a 4-year-old boy who was reported missing from a resort in Ito, Shizuoka Prefecture, on Saturday.

According to police, the boy, Reiki Fukumi, was found in the forest at around 9 a.m. Monday, Fuji TV reported. He was found sitting on the ground hear a river several hundred meters northeast of the resort. His face was covered in mud and he was not wearing his shoes, which had been found on Sunday afternoon.

Police initially said he had scratches on his face but he was taken to hospital where doctors said he suffered a fractured skull, although his condition is not life-threatening.

Police said they used dogs and drones to search for Reiki who was reported missing by his parents at around 2 p.m. Saturday. Police searched for the boy on Saturday and Sunday, but without luck.

Police said Reiki had come with his family and about 18 others to the resort for the weekend. While the adults were preparing for a barbecue at around noon, Reiki and three other children went outside the compound to play. The boy apparently got separated from his friends.

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28 Comments
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Good news. Thanks for the update JT!

13 ( +13 / -0 )

I'm sure they thought the other kids were attending to each other as they prepared the meal. The compassionate know how horrible it was for them. Kicking those who are down is not a desirable trait in a human being. So wonderful that they found this lost child.

9 ( +9 / -0 )

Yes, at last some good news about something!

8 ( +8 / -0 )

To those who are so quick to slam the parents, we have a word for people who claim to know everything about how to raise a child. That word is "childless." Some people need to feel they are somehow superior, and that such bad things will never happen to them or their family because they are "better parents" than all the others.

I see the same thing when people contract an illness or die suddenly. People always point out "oh, he drank too much, he smoked, he ate poorly, etc." Because they are afraid of dying and find reasons to tell themselves it won't happen to them.

This case had a happy ending, thankfully. But people who are quick and ready to criticize without all the facts are not helping anyone. Not even themselves.

5 ( +7 / -2 )

Obviously you don't understand the difference between a simple mistake and obvious neglect. Would it taken the kid to have been found dead for you to see it?

The kid was playing with friends near to the parents. That is not neglect. Small children have been playing outside with friends for thousands of years and I do not see this as neglect. This was an awful bit of bad luck, but it is not neglect. Neglect would be leaving the child alone at home with a bag of potato chips while the parents go away for the night.

Neglect is not the same allowing a child to go and play with age mates.

5 ( +5 / -0 )

glad the boy was found, hope the parent will be more careful from now on.

4 ( +4 / -0 )

several hundred meters northeast of the compound

two days of police searches, drones and dogs, family members searching...surely it should be easy to find a 4 year old boy?

now is the season for bears and snakes, lucky he is OK.

4 ( +4 / -0 )

Its good to see this, I read the earlier article about him being missing yesterday and was wondering. Glad they found him (and good on JT for the follow up).

4 ( +4 / -0 )

More award-winning parents.

Damn them for not being absolutely perfect and for not being like the posters here who literally watch their children from the second they are born, until they are grown adults.

Stupid humans.

4 ( +11 / -7 )

Glad the kid was found!

Goodluck, BrianW, what is it with the snakes bit LOL! You think snakes go out hunting kids out in the woods, snakes almost ALWAYS head in the opposite direction of people, they are rarely a danger to anyone, unless someone picks one up or the off chance someone steps on one.

I like snakes & have been around them for over 5 decades & have never stepped on one, snakes are NOT a threat to humans in Japan, but the other way round, usually the snake loses!

4 ( +4 / -0 )

Once had a kid left behind after a private party cos the parents were so busy doing XYZ, glad this kid has been found safe and sound.

3 ( +3 / -0 )

I guess if he didn't hear the barks and whistles, and didn't notice all the lights and fires just downhill, then maybe he wasn't too bothered and had curled up fast asleep. Lucky it wasn't too cold last night.

3 ( +3 / -0 )

the kid was with a group of friends, so i think we have to step back a bit as we weren't there. maybe he was bullied and ran away? we don't know. just he is safe and we can not worry anymore.

2 ( +2 / -0 )

He was lost but found. I am very happy now for him.

1 ( +1 / -0 )

I wish parents would realize the kids this young need an adult around. No doubt everyone thought the other kids would watch him but didn't. Glad he's safe and sound.

1 ( +2 / -1 )

Neglect is an action, dearh is an outcome. 

Neglect is an inaction.

1 ( +1 / -0 )

Surprised the comment hasn't appeared yet barking about how the parents have to pay big money for the search party.

0 ( +1 / -1 )

I wish parents would realize the kids this young need an adult around. 

How do you know they didn’t? Where are you getting your information from, considering that there isn’t enough information in this article to be able to determine that.

Obviously you don't understand the difference between a simple mistake and obvious neglect. 

And obviously you don’t understand what it’s like to be a parent, because if you did you wouldn’t be so ridiculous as to claim this as ‘obvious neglect’ based on the limited information in this article.

Would it taken the kid to have been found dead for you to see it? 

Neglect is an action, dearh is an outcome. They are not directly equivalent. Some parents neglect their kids and somehow have nothing whatsoever happen to them, while others watch their kids like hawks, but even so end in tragedy during an accident or a momentary distraction or whatever. You are trying to the action as neglect based on the existence of the negative outcome, but that’s a logical fallacy due as I just explained.

So to answer your question, if the kid had turned up dead I still would have made the same comment I did, as JT stories pretty much never contain enough information to draw definitive conclusions.

0 ( +5 / -5 )

GW, on Honshu mamushi vipers will not back down or run away. Be afraid, and step away swiftly. Yamakagashi will bite with the front fangs with a light poison, but if seriously aggravated will hit you with a deadly poison in their back teeth, for which there is no antidote. (Okinawa by the way is another league again in poisonous snakes.)

Nanda,

I know these two varieties very well because they both live in my front yard! The mamushi I rarely see there but do encounter them on occasion when walking around rice fields. The reason mamushi don't "race" away is because their MAIN defense against humans is camouflage(not their poison) , they simply hope you don't notice them& THAT works very well 99.9% of the time. All you have to do is keep a bit of a distance, simple easy.

Yamakagashi I can see 2 or 3 on some days, you are correct they are REAR fanged & venomous, BUT about the ONLY way they can get that poison into a human is if they bit ones hand, more specifically ones fingers where the larger ones might get their mouth around a digit. That's why most Japanese are surprised to find they have venom.

As for Okinawa you are right there many cool critters down there that are more dangerous so when venturing out one should wear the appropriate clothing if they venture into the wild a bit, again simple.

0 ( +0 / -0 )

Back on topic please.

DaDude: "Surprised the comment hasn't appeared yet barking about how the parents have to pay big money for the search party."

Pretty obvious that the neglect the parents showed has caused this to cross your mind at least. Your comment is kind of like when a gun-advocate jumps on a thread or in the media in general and says, "Watch people blame guns for this!" after a mass shooting.

Strangerland: "Damn them for not being absolutely perfect and for not being like the posters here "

Obviously you don't understand the difference between a simple mistake and obvious neglect. Would it taken the kid to have been found dead for you to see it? Ah, who are we kidding... then you'd just say the parents had suffered enough and shouldn't be criticized.

-1 ( +3 / -4 )

Reiki who was found sitting on the ground several hundred meters northeast of the resort.

And the police didn't find him on the first day? only a hundred meters! In these situation an adult should always be around the children to monitor them. well I am glad he's back safe and well, this could have been a whole lot worse, hyperthermia, snakes ect.

-2 ( +2 / -4 )

Technically yeah.

-3 ( +0 / -3 )

GW, on Honshu mamushi vipers will not back down or run away. Be afraid, and step away swiftly. Yamakagashi will bite with the front fangs with a light poison, but if seriously aggravated will hit you with a deadly poison in their back teeth, for which there is no antidote. (Okinawa by the way is another league again in poisonous snakes.)

This little boy was protected by the forest spirits, or by the angels.

-4 ( +1 / -5 )

More award-winning parents. At least this story ended on a good note. Parents should be forced to attend lectures on how to supervise children. I bet the other kids he went outside with were also very young.

-9 ( +2 / -11 )

Great news. Now can we form a line to kick the moron parents in their asses?

-10 ( +5 / -15 )

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