Missing Japanese tourist with mild dementia found in Seoul after online post

A post asking for help in finding a missing Japanese tourist with mild dementia, uploaded on Sunday on X, formerly known as Twitter. [SCREEN CAPTURE]

An online post on X played a role in locating a missing Japanese tourist with mild dementia who disappeared during his family trip to Seoul on Friday.

The post shared on X, formerly known as Twitter, on Sunday, appealed for assistance in locating the user's ailing father.

According to the post, the 74-year-old Japanese man went missing after he was last seen near The Plaza Hotel near Seoul City Hall in Jung District, central Seoul, on Friday.

“My father went missing after he told us that he was going to the restroom,” the post said. “He does not have any money nor does he have much strength to move. So there is a possibility that he may be lying down in some underground area.”

The post rapidly circulated among X's users worldwide, urging Seoul tourists to keep an eye out for the lost Japanese man while traveling.

On Sunday afternoon, the family member who posted the message received a call from the police, confirming that the father had been located, as detailed in an additional post uploaded at 8:12 p.m.

“To the people who spread the post, gave information and sent their worries, I have received a call from the police that my father was found,” the post said, thanking other users.

The father was discovered in Incheon, where the police found him sitting on the side of a street.

BY CHOI SEO-IN, KIM JI-YE [kim.jiye@joongang.co.kr]