Full Name: Eri Kaneko

Alternative Name: 金子恵理ちゃん, Erri Kaneko, Eri-Chan, Kaneko Eri

Case Status: Missing

Record ID#: 0266

*The names “Jane Doe”  and “John Doe” are English names used when the person’s true name is not known. If used above, the name refers to a person of unknown identity.

Date of Birth*: Circa 1990 – 1991
Birthplace:
Age at the Time: 6
Age Group: Child (6 to 9 Years Old)
Biological Sex: Female
Hair: Black
Eyes: Black
Skin Complexion:
Shoe Size:
Ethnicity: Asian
Nationality: Japan
Languages Spoken: Japanese

*If the date says January 1, this is often just a placeholder for an unknown specific date. It usually means “sometime that year”.

Physical Build:

Height:

Weight

Distinguishing Marks:

• Physical Abnormality, Speech Impediment

Medical Condition:
Physical Abnormality: Her Right Arm was thicker than her Left Arm (左腕に比べて右腕が太い(当時)). She had some congenital slowed development that manifested as trouble speaking.
Dental Condition:
Scars & Other Marks: Small beauty mark (mole) below her nose.
Piercings:
Tattoos:

Other Descriptors: When she waves bye-bye, she does so with the back of her hand facing outward.

Clothing

• Blue, Long-Sleeved Shirt with two Puppy Dogs on it (as seen in missing person photo)
• Orange pants with a brown bear on the left knee
• Pink and White Boots

Possessions:

Date of the Disappearance*: June 29, 1997

Description: On June 29, 1997, six-year-old Eri Kaneko vanished without a trace from the vicinity of her home in Fudai Village (普代村), a small rural community in Iwate Prefecture, Japan. The case remains one of Japan’s enduring unsolved mysteries, with no confirmed sightings, evidence of her fate, or resolution after more than 28 years.

Eri (金子恵理), born around 1991, was described was a sweet child with some developmental challenges: she had a speech impediment, a small mole under her nose, and a noticeable physical feature where her right arm was thicker than her left. She also had a unique way of waving goodbye, showing the back of her hand outward. At the time of her disappearance, she was wearing a blue long-sleeved shirt with puppy designs, orange pants featuring a brown bear on the left knee, and pink-and-white boots. The shirt can be seen in her missing persons poster.

That morning, the family drove about 85 km north to Hachinohe City in neighboring Aomori Prefecture for their monthly shopping trip and returned home around 3:00 p.m. Eri’s father then went to the nearby mountains to gather wild plants before returning home and laying down for a nap. Meanwhile, Eri changed clothes and was last seen outside playing in the front yard. Her mother observed her playing near a stream (or water area) behind the house around 4:15 p.m., and her father reported hearing her voice interacting with her mother at one point.

when her father woke up from his nap at approximately 4:55pm (16:55), he noticed Eri was not there and he no longer heard her playing. Although her parents and grandfather searched frantically, they were not able to find her in the area nearby.

Police were notified, and a massive effort followed: over the next month, approximately 2,000 police officers, firefighters, and local volunteers scoured the village, surrounding mountains, and coastline. More than 1,000 households were interviewed, flyers were distributed, and K-9 units were deployed. The dogs tracked Eri’s scent only a short distance along the driveway toward the woods, marking the last confirmed trace of her. Although Eri often played outside, she could not have gone further than about 1km (0.6mi) on foot given her age; and she had always returned previously without trouble. Even when she did go into the mountains with her father, she knew how to find her father’s car if she got lost.

Eri was usually an obedient child who listened to her parents and had never tried to go up into the forested areas in the past. She also was taught to never ride in cars with strangers and to always identify the person before getting into a vehicle. The fact that she became lost in an area where she frequently played is unusual and raises concerns of a possible kidnapping.

A second K-9 unit also identified Eri’s scent in the same place the next day, and a housewife who’s home faced that direction said she heard Eri-chan’s voice. The woman later acknowledged after repeated questioning by police that it might have been Eri’s mother’s voice instead.

Some family members raised concerns about a possible abduction, but police reportedly focused primarily on the mountainous terrain behind the home, conducting another search in March 2000 with no new findings.

Fudai Village is a remote coastal area surrounded by the Pacific Ocean to the northeast and rugged mountains elsewhere, with limited roads in and out. This geography made it difficult to conceal someone long-term, yet no evidence suggested Eri had wandered far. She was familiar with the area and had never strayed previously.

Multiple Victims?: No

Rumored or Actual Sightings:

*If the date says January 1, this is often just a placeholder for an unknown specific date. It usually means “sometime that year”.

Date the Body was Recovered:

Description: Unknown

Time of Death:

Cause of Death:

Recovered Remains (if partial):

Suspected Homicide?: No

Multiple Victims?: No

DNA Tested (No Match):

*If the date says January 1, this is often just a placeholder for an unknown specific date. It usually means “sometime that year”.

Description: An unfamiliar white van was spotted in the neighborhood shortly before Eri vanished, and her father recalled seeing a Japan Self-Defense Forces (SDF) jeep parked nearby days earlier. . . an odd sight in the area with no training grounds close by.

License Plate:

Description: