Yamato Tanooka, the 7-year-old boy found Friday in a hut at a Self-Defense Forces training facility in southwest Hokkaido six days after he went missing, has said that he lost his sense of direction because he cried so much after his father ordered him to get out of the car. He apparently headed in the opposite direction of the car, sources familiar with the case said Sunday.
Because he was scared of the mountains, he continued to walk along the road until he reached the SDF training facility where he was later found. The door was unlocked so he went inside to sleep and avoid the cold outside, he was quoted as telling his father and others.
Tanooka told his father he did not see anyone during the six days he was missing. According to other sources, the boy said he stayed at the shelter because he thought someone would eventually find him.