Famous Japanese manga artist falls to death in mountains
The popular Japanese manga artist of “Crayon Shin-chan,” Yoshito Usui, was found dead in the mountains of Gunma prefecture after apparently falling to his death off a cliff. Usui had reportedly gone missing on the 11th of the month after telling his family he was going for a day-hike in the mountains.
The body of 51 year old Yoshito Usui was discovered by a hiker yesterday, September 19th (JST), at the bottom of one of the steep cliffs of Mt. Arafune, about 90 miles northwest of Tokyo. The incident appears to have happened on the north face of the mountain just off a popular hiking trail on a part of the cliff that is about about 100 meters (330 feet) tall . Mt. Arafune is famous locally for its colored cliffs which run between 200 to 300 meters tall (about 650 to 1,000 feet) in some areas, and is considered to be one of the top 200 mountains in Japan. While there are no guard rails along the cliff edges, accidents on the mountain are reportedly rare.
Rescue workers yesterday were unable to retrieve Utui's body. It was believed he was already dead by then. Today, September 20th, around 17 police officials hiked up to the body’s location and had it airlifted out by helicopter in the late afternoon. Although descriptions of the body’s clothing matched Usui’s, identification was not officially determined until late this evening after matching dental records. A broken digital camera and a beige bag were also found in the same vicinity.
Usui, who enjoyed hiking, left his home early in the morning of the 11th after telling his family that he was going to Mt.Arafune and would be back by the evening. However, when he didn’t return home or answer his cell phone on the 12th, his wife went to the police. A faint signal from the phone was located in the Mt. Arafune area on the 13th, but could not be pinpointed. The signal disappeared on the 15th according to reports.
The cause of the incident is still being investigated, but his family did not believe Usui to be suicidal.
About Crayon Shin-chan
Kureyon Shin-chan (Crayon Shin-chan) is an awkwardly-drawn comic and cartoon revolving around the antics of a foul-mouthed Kindergartener, Shinnosuke Nohara, and his family. It first appeared in a weekly Japanese comic magazine in 1990. It was turned into a TV anime series in 1992, followed by numerous theatrical releases. The cartoon still airs new episodes weekly in Japan, and the most recent Crayon Shin-chan movie, Crayon Shin-chan: Roar! Kasukabe Animal Kingdom, was released earlier this year in Japanese theaters. Dubbed versions of Crayon Shin-chan have played in the U.S. on Cartoon Networks’ Adult Swim in the past.
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(Image note: The above article image is the first front cover to the first Crayon Shin-chan comic book)
