A 5-year-old boy drowned after he went missing from his relatives’ home on Iwaki island in Kamijima town, Ehime Prefecture, on Wednesday.
According to police, the boy, Saku Tanaka, and his family who are from Niihama in Ehime Prefecture, had been visiting their relatives. NHK reported that a little after 8 p.m., one of Saku’s parents called police and said he had gone missing about 20 minutes earlier while they were preparing dinner.
After relatives and police officers searched the area, the boy was found floating face down in the sea at nearby Koso Port at around 8:30 p.m. He was taken to hospital where he was confirmed dead.
Police said there were no external injuries on the boy’s body and believe he fell into the sea after wandering away from his relatives’ home.
