{
  "id": 2518670,
  "title": "Japan dad ditches 7-year-old for hours to climb Mt Fuji",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/08/22/japan-dad-ditches-7-year-old-for-hours-to-climb-mt-fuji",
  "topic": "world",
  "section": "World",
  "published": "2026-08-22T06:26:14.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "New Straits Times",
    "slug": "new-straits-times",
    "url": "https://www.nst.com.my/world/world/2026/08/1516500/japan-dad-ditches-7-year-old-hours-climb-mt-fuji"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "A Japanese father left his seven-year-old son alone for several hours while he continued his climb up Mount Fuji, leading to a stern warning from authorities. The boy was discovered alone on a hiking trail on Thursday and was placed under police custody. A local police officer in the Shizuoka region informed AFP of the incident on Saturday. The child disclosed to his father that he was feeling tired at the sixth station of the mountain, which sits at an elevation of over 2,000 meters (6,500 feet). Since his older brother had preceded him, the father instructed the younger son to wait at the station and proceeded hiking with his other son. According to SBS TV, the father was told by staff at a mountain hut that the boy had been waiting for eight hours with no more than snacks and a soft drink, and without any money. Police officers reached out to the father, who was at the eighth station, and returned the child to him upon his arrival. The officer stated that the man received a reprimand from the police for abandoning the child. The father reportedly apologized to the police, admitting that his behavior was negligent.",
  "summary": "TOKYO: A man left his seven-year-old son behind for hours on Japan’s Mount Fuji while continuing his climb, resulting in a stern warning from authorities, police and local media reported.",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 3,
    "also_reported_by": [
      {
        "outlet": "Free Malaysia Today",
        "title": "Japanese dad ditches 7-year-old for hours to climb Mt Fuji",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/08/22/japanese-dad-ditches-7-year-old-for-hours-to-climb-mt-fuji",
        "published": "2026-08-22T03:35:00.000Z"
      },
      {
        "outlet": "The Korea Times",
        "title": "Japanese dad ditches 7-year-old for hours to climb Mount Fuji",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/08/22/japanese-dad-ditches-7-year-old-for-hours-to-climb-mount-fuji",
        "published": "2026-08-22T05:32:03.000Z"
      }
    ]
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}