A ten-year-old boy who went missing from a special needs school in Komatsu city, Ishikawa Prefecture, Japan, has been found dead after a large-scale search operation.

The child left his classroom at the Ishikawa Prefectural Komatsu Special Needs School shortly after 11am local time on Tuesday, telling staff that he needed to use the bathroom, but he did not return.School officials later suggested that he may have unlocked an emergency exit at the rear of the building and left the premises.CCTV footage from a nearby road showed a child matching his description running in the direction of Junigataki Falls shortly after his disappearance.

His indoor shoes were later found near a rice field close to the school, while his outdoor shoes remained inside the building, indicating he had left in inappropriate footwear.A major search effort involving around 200 firefighters and police officers was launched on Tuesday and resumed early the following morning.A police dog detected a human scent near the waterfall area, prompting further focus on that location.

At around 11am on Wednesday, roughly 24 hours after he went missing, a firefighter discovered the boy submerged in water at the base of Junigataki Falls, approximately 1.5 kilometres from the school.He was taken to hospital, where he was pronounced dead.Authorities reported no visible external injuries and stated that the death was not believed to be suspicious.

The incident has raised concerns about the safety of vulnerable children in supervised educational settings, particularly those with intellectual disabilities who may be at risk of wandering.Local reports also noted fears of wildlife, including bear sightings in the surrounding area, which had added urgency to the search operation.

The case has highlighted wider research indicating that children with autism or similar conditions may be more likely to wander and face heightened risks of drowning or traffic-related accidents when they leave safe environments.