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Yamadas pay their first visit to Saipan Mayor
Hideki Yamada, far left, Mayor David M. Apatang, and Kozue Yamada pose for a photo last Friday during the Yamadas’ first visit to the Saipan Mayor’s Office. (Kimberly A. Bautista)
Nearly four years after the disappearance of sisters Natsuki and Chinatsu Yamada, their parents Hideki and Kozue Yamada visited Saipan Mayor David M. Apatang to officially ask him to join this year’s Liberation Day parade.
The Yamada sisters’ disappearance remains one of the unsolved mysteries of the island of Saipan. Although many have given up the search, the parents of these two women are adamant about uncovering the mystery of their daughters’ disappearance.
According to Apatang, Hideki and Kozue Yamada have been coming to Saipan every year in hopes of receiving news on their daughters’ whereabouts. This year, they wanted to join the parade to pass out flyers but unfortunately, it was cancelled.
“The Yamada sisters went missing like three years ago and their parents have been coming back and forth every year. This year, they intend to join the parade unfortunately that was postponed because of the weather situation,” he said.
As a parent himself, Apatang was saddened by the fact that Hideki and Kozue Yamada have been searching for their daughters for years with no luck.
“They came and visited me for the first time and it’s still very sad to see these parents grieving all these years for their daughters,” he said.
Apatang is urging the community, if they have any leads at all, to alert the authorities to rehash the Yamada sisters’ case.
“I am asking the public, if they know anything or have any information on these two missing girls and what happened to those two, please inform the authorities so the parents can rest. They need to know what happened to their daughters,” he said.
Apatang will join in Hideki and Kozue Yamada’s efforts to locate their daughters.
“They gave me a custom T-shirt with the girls’ faces on it that I will wear and they also gave me flyers to post in front of my office” he said.
“They are still looking, hoping, and praying to find their daughters or at least find out exactly what happened to them,” he added.
