Missing US student found dead near Kyoto, Japan, mother says
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A photo of James Higginbotham, 20, who went missing on May 29. His mother, Nancy, seen here (right) with James' father Keith Higginbotham, said on Facebook on June 6 that his body had been found in a mountainous area outside Kyoto.
PHOTOS: NANCY HIGGINBOTHAM VIA FACEBOOK/VIA REUTERS
- American student James Higginbotham, 20, disappeared in Kyoto, Japan, on May 29 during a family holiday. His body was found by a volunteer group.
- Japanese authorities conducted a three-day search. His mother, Nancy Higginbotham, expressed "heartbroken" grief; she suspected he "needed space."
- The cause of death and further details are not yet available. James was an Auburn University engineering student on a family trip.
AI generated
NEW YORK – An American student who disappeared while on a family vacation in Japan was found dead outside Kyoto, his mother wrote in a Facebook post on June 6.
The body of James Higginbotham, 20, was discovered in a mountainous area by a volunteer search-and-rescue group, Nancy Higginbotham wrote. “Our family is heartbroken,” she wrote. “The grief we feel is impossible to put into words.”
A cause of death and further details were not immediately available.
James Higginbotham, a resident of Alabama and an engineering student at Auburn University in the US state, was last seen leaving a Kyoto train station on May 29. Later that night, his phone went dark and its location services were turned off, his mother previously told Reuters.
Until then, she was able to track his movements using the app Life360, she said.
His parents believe he was heading to a nearby hiking trail. Nancy Higginbotham had told Reuters she believed her son may have “needed space”.
The Higginbotham family was visiting Japan to celebrate the high school graduation of James Higginbotham’s younger brother.
An initial search by the Japanese authorities lasted three days and included around 100 police officers, K-9 units and helicopters, but did not uncover any trace of him, CNN news outlet reported. REUTERS
