Auburn University Student Found Dead in Japan After Days-Long Search

James “Weston” Higginbotham, a 20-year-old Auburn University student from Alabama, was found dead on June 6 in a mountainous area outside Kyoto, Japan, eight days after he disappeared during a family trip. His mother, Nancy Higginbotham, announced the news on Facebook. Authorities have not publicly released the circumstances of his death.

Weston was last seen at Kyoto Station at approximately 6 p.m. on May 29. That sighting, which could not be independently verified through official police records, was widely circulated as search efforts grew in the days that followed.

A Family’s Grief, A World Watching

In her Facebook statement, Nancy Higginbotham put the loss plainly.

“Our family is heartbroken to share that Weston was found deceased by a volunteer search-and-rescue group in a mountainous area outside of Kyoto. The grief we feel is impossible to put into words,” she wrote.

She acknowledged the thousands who had supported the family through the search. “We are deeply grateful to the countless people across the United States, Japan, and around the world who shared Weston’s story, prayed for our family, offered encouragement, and helped in the search efforts.”

The family has since asked for privacy as they grieve.

A Reunion in Tokyo, Days Before

About a week before he vanished, Weston had met an old friend in Tokyo. Hiyu Shikari had attended school with Weston in the United States before relocating to Japan. They had dinner together in the Shinjuku district on May 22.

“We had such a great time at a restaurant in Shinjuku, which is in Tokyo,” Shikari told The U.S. Sun.

When Weston and his family traveled on to Kyoto, Shikari tried to check in. He had recently been there himself and knew a typhoon was approaching the region. He sent a text.

“Good evening! How’s the stay going? Hopefully yall are having a good time in Kyoto! Lmk if you need me to recommend you any places.”

No response came. Whether the message was ever successfully delivered to Weston’s phone remains unclear.

Search That Crossed Borders

Friends, family, and strangers from across the world shared Weston’s story after he disappeared and appealed for information. Nancy Higginbotham’s statement thanked people “across the United States, Japan, and around the world” for their prayers, encouragement, and search participation.

It was a volunteer search-and-rescue group, not official authorities, that located Weston in the mountainous terrain outside Kyoto.

What Remains Unanswered

Authorities have not publicly released further details regarding the circumstances of Weston’s death, according to UNILAD’s June 6 reporting on the search and its outcome. No cause of death has been confirmed.

The family has asked not to be contacted as they mourn.

“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.”