Yuki Kamomae

Status:

Open

Jurisdiction:

Yokkaichi Police Department Mie Prefectural (POLICE)

Missing From:

Yokkaichi, Mie Prefecture, Japan

Summary:

Yuki Kamomae, an 8-year-old second-grade student from Yokkaichi, Mie Prefecture, Japan, disappeared on March 15, 1991. She vanished from her home while her father slept, leaving behind a cup of warm cocoa. Her case remains unsolved after over three decades.

Vital Statistics

Circumstances of Disappearance:

On March 15, 1991, Yuki Kamomae walked home from school around noon and entered her family home in Yokkaichi, Tomida. Her father, Yoshiyuki, was sleeping in the bedroom. At approximately 2:30 p.m., her mother Ichiko called home and Yuki answered the phone; her father did not hear the call because Yuki was careful not to wake him. When Yuki's younger sister returned home at approximately 3:30 p.m., Yuki was nowhere to be found. A cup of warm cocoa was left on the table, as if Yuki had been interrupted while drinking it. Notably, Yuki had not put on her shoes or jacket—items she always wore when going outside to play with friends. After an initial period of the family contacting relatives and teachers, police were notified. Eyewitnesses reported seeing Yuki at Tomida Station, a local subway station, shortly before her disappearance, with some accounts describing a yakuza-looking man speaking with her.

Additional Details:

Yuki was a second-grade student who typically came home from school and would visit friends' houses. On the day of her disappearance, police investigation revealed unusual behavior: Yuki had refused to play with her usual friends. The pink jumper and bicycle she normally used when visiting friends were still in the house. The cocoa cup remained warm with only small amounts consumed, suggesting she was interrupted while attempting to drink it. Police treated the case as a likely kidnapping given her immediate disappearance and the circumstantial evidence. Three years later, in 1994, the Kamomae family received anonymous letters containing cryptic, difficult-to-decipher handwritten text with randomly mixed Kanji, Katakana, and Hiragana characters. The letter was addressed to a name with a typo (Hideyuki instead of the father's actual name Yoshiyuki) and referenced the name 'Miyuki' rather than 'Yuki.' Experts were unable to fully interpret the letter's meaning. Some theories suggest the letter may have been written by someone with knowledge of the case, possibly someone with yakuza connections, though experts remain divided on whether the strange letter is genuinely connected to Yuki's disappearance or is merely a cruel hoax. Other letters also arrived claiming to offer assistance through dowsing and spiritual means, but none provided actionable information. In October 2003, a bizarre phone call came to the family in which a young-sounding male voice described Yuki's physical characteristics and head shape in detail, but the description did not match other known facts. Yuki's case remains completely unsolved and is considered one of Japan's three most mysterious child disappearances of the late 1980s and early 1990s.

Case Last Updated:

Jul 07, 2026