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Boat believed to be from North Korea found with 8 corpses in Akita

boat believed to be from North Korea
A boat believed to be from North Korea that drifted ashore in Akita Prefecture on Sunday was found to contain eight corpses (TV Asahi)

AKITA (TR) – The Akita Coast Guard revealed on Monday that a boat that drifted ashore in Oga City over the weekend was later found to contain eight corpses, possibly the latest case of a vessel washing ashore from North Korea, reports Nikkan Sports (Nov. 27).

On Monday, officers searched the 10-meter-long craft, which drifted ashore at the Miyazawa Beach Resort the day before, and found the eight corpses, portions of which had turned skeletal.

The coast guard was tipped off about the wooden vessel by local citizens at around 8:30 a.m. on Sunday. Due to large waves, the inside the craft was not inspected until Monday.

The boat was first spotted floating adrifting off the coast on Friday. However, bad weather also prevented a search of the vessel that time.

Second boat in one week

Last week, another boat found at the Honjo Marina in Yurihonjo City, Akita contained eight men. None of the eight persons, all of whom appeared to speak Korean, had suffered serious injuries. The marina is located about 70 kilometers from Miyazawa Beach Resort.

In 2015, dozens of bodies were found inside similar boats from North Korea that had washed ashore on the coasts of a number of prefectures in northern Japan.