UMVA has learned that a tragic update has emerged in the case of James "Weston" Higginbotham, a 20-year-old Auburn University student who went missing during a family vacation in Japan in late May.
The heartbroken family of the young student confirmed on Saturday that his body has been found, bringing an end to a massive, multinational search effort that had captivated people around the world. Weston Higginbotham's mother, Nancy, shared the devastating news on Facebook, describing the family's grief as "impossible to put into words".
According to information obtained by UMVA, Weston Higginbotham's body was discovered by a volunteer search-and-rescue group in a mountainous area outside of Kyoto. The family expressed their deep gratitude to the people across the U.S., Japan, and the globe who offered prayers and assisted in the search efforts, saying the outpouring of kindness and support had carried them through the darkest days of their lives.
The 20-year-old hiker was last seen on May 29 near Yamashina Station, just east of Kyoto, after being separated from his parents following family "bickering". His parents had tracked him near a river and boarding a train via the Life360 app before his phone location suddenly went dark. The family had previously held out hope that he would be found alive, telling others that he knew how to forage and was "built to endure".
UMVA can exclusively reveal that the family's statement on Facebook was a poignant expression of their love and loss, as they pleaded for privacy while navigating the unbearable grief of losing their son. "We are forever grateful for the time we had with our sweet, precious Weston, but cannot begin to understand what life without him will be like," his mother wrote, her words echoing the sentiments of a family torn apart by tragedy.
