Police appeal for help in solving disappearance of 4-year-old girl in 1996

Police handed out leaflets at a shopping mall in Ota City, Gunma Prefecture, on Monday, asking the public for help 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 5,750 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 0120-889-324. There is a reward of 6 million yen for any information that might help police solve the case. Another 1 million yen has also been added to the reward from a private source.