Overview
- Police and the family say surveillance footage and phone data place 20-year-old James “Weston” Higginbotham at Yamashina Station on May 29 and his phone lost network service about 8:29 p.m.
- Investigators reviewed CCTV and purchase records that show a Kohnan hardware store stop before he arrived in Kyoto, but it is unclear whether he boarded another train after leaving Yamashina Station.
- Higginbotham’s parents have flown to Kyoto and are organizing volunteer searches of nearby hiking routes and wooded areas while local police have deployed officers, K-9 teams and aircraft.
- U.S. consular channels and Alabama state representatives have been engaged to coordinate support with Japanese authorities, and the family is asking anyone who spots him to contact local police rather than post locations publicly.
- Family and friends describe Higginbotham as an experienced hiker and navigator, and the search team warns that steep, forested terrain and storm conditions complicate efforts and may expand the area that needs to be checked.