Cell phone of murdered boy found in Fukuoka park

Saturday 20th September, 10:28 AM JST

FUKUOKA —

The cell phone of a 6-year-old boy who was strangled has been found in a park where the murder took place, police said Saturday. The body of Koki Tomiishi, a first-grader, was found beside a public restroom in the park on Thursday, but his cell phone, equipped with a GPS locator, had been missing.

Police have been searching for the phone, suspecting its neck strap may have been used to strangle the boy.

The boy went missing at around 3:30 p.m. Thursday when his 35-year-old mother left him for a few minutes to go to the restroom, police said. The mother tried to locate the boy with the GPS function, and the cell phone indicated a location several meters from the restroom, they said.

People at the scene helping search for the boy went to the location but could not find the boy there. The boy was then found lying on the ground behind the restroom.

The park administration office, meanwhile, said that on Thursday evening, there were many people in the park, walking with or without dogs, but earlier, around the time of the boy’s death, only a very few people were seen in the vicinity of the toilets and the athletic facilities. “At that time,” said a park spokesperson, “there was nobody who appeared suspicious.”

Latest 15 of 29 Total Comments Show All

cwhite at 11:25 PM JST - 20th September

and where exactly did they find the phone????????
helloklitty at 06:37 AM JST - 21st September

If they lived near the park, why did mama have to use the parks toilet?

Maybe they are trying to save water in their home.
tripank at 09:37 AM JST - 21st September

this is Japan were the TV, people and the government are more worried about some russians smoking pot then the real problems in this country. I have been here in JAPAN of 12 years now and how many children have been killed. This site because it is a Japanese based or Japanese owned site, so it CENSORS the truth about Japapn and the Japanese society.
Nippon5 at 10:55 AM JST - 21st September

JT has a very empty story as is its practice.. Here is a link to Asahi who has a much clearer story... http://www.asahi.com/english/Herald-asahi/TKY200809200048.html
fiendish at 02:50 PM JST - 21st September

Nippon5 just answered most of the questions here - The main one being that even the guy who found the body missed it on his first look around the restroom as it had been hidden. Solution use news source which gives more than a cursory sketch of events.
romulus3 at 03:22 PM JST - 21st September

I am still suspicious of the time. according to the Asahi website they arrived at the park at 330pm which means she used it immediately upon arrival. I wana know where they came from. If they came from home, which is near by, then I suspect the mother because she would have used the toilet before she left home but if they came from another place it changes my perspective.
taniwha at 03:28 PM JST - 21st September

Finger prints on the cell phone?

A mother uses a toilet and leaves a 6 year old waiting for her outside is not a crime. Daytime in a busy park after all.

This is an indictment on society not on the mother who surely along with her child is the victim here.
YangYong at 04:33 PM JST - 21st September

It is in no way the mother's fault, absolutely not. There are now reports of a man been seen in the play area, a 'fushinsha'.
blynn at 05:19 PM JST - 21st September

I disagree that it is in no way the mother's fault and while leaving the child alone outside is not a crime it was certainly an irresponsible act for a parent of a young child. I live approximately 10 minutes from Odo Park and have two sons, a three year old and a 18 month old. I would never consider leaving them playing outside in that park alone –or anywhere else for that matter– while I went to the bathroom. She should have taken him with her or waited. This was a tragic death that could have been easily prevented if the mother had taken more care and showed a little more common sense.

With all of that said, I feel immense sorrow for the boy's family and friends, especially for his mother who is almost certainly wracked with guilt.
Nippon5 at 05:57 PM JST - 21st September

Romulus3 all you have to do is aread a Japanese Newspaper and the story is much clearer.

The Yomori News said she picked him up from school and they stopped in the park on the way home,Most 1st graders get done around 230ish and the school might be a distance from the park..

To blame the parent for the sickness of another is a strange arguement to make.... If I had to hold my child every minute of the day I wouldnt get any thing done, do you go to his/her class and hold his hand? A guy can take a kid form a school in a few seconds too... Maybe she didnt figure a pshyco would take a child in a busy park in day light while she spent 1 minute or two taking a whiz. Its nice to have 20/20 vision on everything, but in the truth of the matter its only 20/20 in hindsight...
Orangeporange at 06:02 PM JST - 21st September

I don't see anything wrong with leaving a 6 year old out of the toilet to use the bathroom. 6 year old boys usually don't go into toilets with their mothers once they get into elementry school, and have you seen those dirty, nasty dinky squatty potties in those parks? How could a mother and a 6 year old boy even fit in one? 6 year olds are pretty big, and pretty darn independent. Many of those parks don't have "family" or handicapped restrooms. I don't understand why people are all over the edge about the fact the woman let her boy stand outside the toilet for a few minutes. Heck, my daugther is 4 years old and already trying to assert her independence about going to the toilet by herself and having her own privacy (I usually make her go with me though and if she goes into a toilet by herself, I make sure she talks to me the whole time).
Himajin at 08:14 AM JST - 22nd September

I was watching TV while eating breakfast and nearly spit my coffee out--they just went to arrest the mother...
Schutzhunder1 at 08:20 AM JST - 22nd September

Looks like some of you were right after all.... She is a suspect in the boys murder.
Sarge at 08:21 AM JST - 22nd September

Himajin - Yappari...
rtrhead1 at 08:56 AM JST - 22nd September

I thought she admitted it. Didn't even wait a week. Hopefully she just rots in prison. Forever. Once she kicks off due to old age, she can be considered reformed and rehabilitated.