Chicago woman goes missing in Japan
Note: Schipper has been found. The original story is below.
CHICAGO (WGN) — It was all smiles for Kandace Schipper when she landed at the airport in Tokyo back on May 8.
“Every single day she had been communicating with family and friends,” said Adam Willea, Schipper’s brother-in-law. “I mean text, phone calls, pictures, updates, Instagram posts. And then it all abruptly ended on June 4th.”
Family haven’t heard from the 29-year-old, or a man she was traveling with — 27-year-old Luis Torres — since.
Schipper, originally from Chicago, was last heard from in Shibuya, Japan, after a credit card transaction alerted family.
Willea said their family has filed a missing person’s report with the Chicago Police Department, contacted the U.S. Embassy, and authorities abroad to help them locate Schipper, but he said they’ve hit a roadblock with Tokyo Metropolitan Police.
“I guess it’s [an] issue because technically her flight home isn’t scheduled yet,” Willea said. “So, until she misses her flight home, they won’t even start a report.”
“We’re here stateside. There’s literally nothing we can do,” Willea added. “So, this helpless feeling of not knowing if she is in a hospital, is she being being held somewhere against her will? Is she hurt? There’s nothing we can even do because it’s in Toyko, Japan. We need feet on the ground over there.”