これらは山梨県警察が公開した公式書類です。
*English Translation*
Name: Kanno Mizuki
Age: 15
Sex: Female
Height: 152.4 cm
Weight: 43.4 kg
Hair color: Black
Eye color: Dark Brown
Description: Kanno Mizuki was last seen on February 28, 2007, at approximately 3:27 p.m. She was wearing a white dress shirt, a navy blue blazer, a dark plaid knee-length skirt, long wool socks, and white shoes. She was carrying a large black backpack with gray accents.
Last known location: Kanno was last seen leaving her school, Fuji-kawaguchiko High School, located at Japan, 〒401-0301 Yamanashi, Minamitsuru District, Fujikawaguchiko, 船津６６６３−１, on foot. She did not have a bike, and her cell phone has been turned off since the time of her disappearance.
Translator notes: In Japan, it is very normal for children to walk home from a very young age. Japan is considered a very safe country to live in and therefore parents let children walk freely from place to place.
Investigation: Kanno’s family reported her missing on March 1, 2007, 7:28 a.m. after she failed to show up home. Kanno is known to be reliable and punctual, and her disappearance is considered out of character. Kanno loves her parents dearly and is known to have many friends. There is no known reason for her to have left without notifying anyone.
February 28, 2007, 7:29 p.m. Multiple reports have come from children in the Kawaguchiko area claiming to hear the faint sound of a bell in the distance. Later, three separate families came into Kawaguchiko Police Box to report that their pets had gone missing.
Translator notes: Unusually heavy fog was reported to be rolling through the entirety of Yamanashi prefecture during this time. The local municipality advised people to avoid unnecessary travel if possible until the fog clears. They reminded residents to use their headlights and fog lights while driving and to keep a safe distance from other vehicles. Pedestrians were advised to wear reflective clothing or carry a flashlight to increase their visibility. The municipality urged residents to check the latest weather and traffic updates before heading out.
March 2, 2007, 10:21 p.m. An elderly woman working at a 7-Eleven 5.3 km east of Kanno’s last known location reported seeing a girl with a similar description slowly walking by. The woman reported that the girl was unresponsive to the woman’s greetings and other external stimuli. The woman commented how the girl didn’t seem to have eyes and did not intervene as she was frightened. The girl was last seen walking east along Nat’l Rte 139.
Police were sent out towards the area where the girl was last seen and conducted a search of the surrounding areas. They were able to recover a white shoe that matched the shoe size of Kanno Mizuki. However, they were unable to find any other sign of the girl in the area or which direction she might have gone. Patrols have been deployed along Nat’l Rte 139.
March 3, 2007, 7:01 p.m. Two children coming back from an after-school program at Narusawa Elementary School were found passed out near Narusawa Post Office. While giving their statements in the nearby care facility they mentioned how they saw a girl seemingly without eyes walk past them. The children claimed that they felt extremely dizzy and collapsed onto the ground at the sound of a chiming bell.
March 4, 2007, 8:22 a.m. More reports of pets going missing by residents in and around the Kawaguchiko area. A separate investigation has been launched in order to locate the animals.
The local neighborhood association in a joint effort with Kanno’s parents have launched a campaign for locating Kanno’s whereabouts. They have printed out flyers, were able to contact a news station, and urged anyone with more information regarding Kanno to please come forward and assist in the search.
March 5, 2007, 9:56 a.m. The owner of the hotel Fuji Midori no Kyuka-mura had many complaints coming from parents saying that their children were unable to sleep due to a bell ringing incessantly throughout the night even though the parents themselves were not able to hear it.
March 5, 2007, 3:07 p.m. Drivers on Nat’l Rte 139 into Aokigahara forest reported smelling an extremely pungent order along the route. One report said it smelled like “a combination of rotten eggs and fish sweltering under the sun.”
Translator Notes: Aokigahara Forest, also known as the Sea of Trees or the Suicide Forest, is a dense, 35-square-kilometer forest located at the base of Mount Fuji in Japan. The forest is known for its dense vegetation and the many natural caves that are formed by the lava flow from Mount Fuji. The forest has gained a reputation for being a site of frequent suicides, making it a subject of controversy and intrigue.
March 5, 2007, 6:19 p.m. A teenage boy working at the 森の駅 風穴 (Wind Cave Shop), a souvenir store, broke out into a psychotic episode after apparently hearing the sound of a bell. He was later admitted into a psychiatric care facility in Kawaguchiko.
March 5, 2007, 7:40 p.m. A couple hiking the nearby tokai nature trail reported seeing a girl matching Kanno’s description near the entrance of the Aokigahara Forest. They claimed that she was walking off the path and deeper into the forest. The man tried to approach her, but a very heavy fog suddenly set in which obstructed his vision and he lost sight of her.
A search and rescue party was formed immediately to search for Kanno. Authorities combed through the forest for days, but they were unable to locate her. The tracking dogs were surprisingly not able to pick up on any scent from her shoe, not only that, but they refused to enter the forest altogether. The dense undergrowth and rugged terrain made the search difficult, and the heavy fog that had descended on the forest only added to the challenge.
March 10, 2007, 12:31 p.m. A school teacher and seven children were on a class field trip to Aokigahara forest. They were hiking on a trail 3.2 km southwest of tokai nature trail. The teacher reported seeing the corpses of many small domestic animals as well as birds around the area. All seven of the children claimed they could hear the distinct sound of a chiming bell coming from the forest while the teacher could not.
January 7, 2023, 10:22 a.m. A second shoe, articles of clothing, and several of Kano Mizuki’s belongings have washed up in a sewage ditch in Shizuoka.
Translator notes: Despite the ongoing search efforts, Kanno was never found, and her disappearance remains a mystery to this day. Unfortunately, she has not been the first child to have gone missing. From the 1950s over 40 children have disappeared from towns, cities, and even prefectures surrounding Aokigahara forest .The rugged terrain and dense undergrowth make it a difficult place to navigate, and it is easy to become disoriented or lost. The forest is also known for its eerily quiet atmosphere.
People love to gossip, so it’s important to be rational and stay close to the facts of the case, but locals in the area are starting to speculate.
Something is luring children into the Aokigahara forest.