Body of Missing 20-Year-Old American Found by Volunteers in Mountains Outside Kyoto After 3-Day Police Search

The body of James Weston Higginbotham was found in a mountainous area outside Kyoto by a volunteer search-and-rescue group, his mother Nancy Higginbotham wrote on Facebook on June 7, 2026. Higginbotham, 20, an engineering student at Auburn University and Alabama resident who also goes by Weston, was last seen near Yamashina Station in the Kyoto area on May 29, 2026.

His phone went dark that night and location services were turned off.

Nancy Higginbotham had tracked her son’s movements through the Life360 app until the signal stopped. His parents believe he was heading to a nearby hiking trail and that he 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 Japanese authorities lasted three days and involved around 100 police officers, K-9 units and helicopters, but found no trace of him, according to CNN. Nancy Higginbotham wrote on Facebook that the family is heartbroken. “The grief we feel is impossible to put into words,” she stated.

A cause of death was not immediately available as of June 7, 2026.