FORGOTTEN ENCOUNTERS #8: The Kofu Incident (Japan, 1975)
- Paul Balmer
- 28 minutes ago
- 4 min read
Two schoolboys see a glowing craft descend into a vineyard. A dark brown humanoid with three fangs steps out and taps one of them on the shoulder — leaving him frozen in fear. Their mothers see the light too. This is one of Japan’s most detailed UFO close encounters — and it hasn’t been debunked to this day.
📍 Location:
Kofu City, Yamanashi Prefecture, Japan
📅 Date:
February 23, 1975
👤 Witnesses:
Masato Kawano & Katsuhiro Yamahata, both age 7
The Setting
The town of Kofu is surrounded by mountains and vineyards. On the evening of February 23, 1975, two second-grade boys, Masato Kawano and Katsuhiro Yamahata, were rollerskating in a quiet residential area near the Hinode Housing Estate.
Around 7:00 PM, they saw two glowing, orange objects in the sky. One continued flying toward nearby Mount Atago, but the other descended vertically into a nearby vineyard — just behind the houses. It didn’t crash. It landed.
Description of the Craft
The landed object was described as:
Discoidal (disc-shaped)
Roughly 15 feet in diameter and 6 feet high
Resting on three spherical landing legs
Covered in silver or metallic panels
With four large, unknown characters or symbols embossed on the side
Emitting a crackling or ticking noise and an orange-red glow that pulsed intermittently
The Encounter
The boys approached the strange object cautiously. Then, a side hatch opened, and a figure emerged:
About 4 feet tall, with a dark brown, wrinkled face
Wearing a shiny silver suit
Three prominent silver fangs or tusks where the mouth should be
No visible eyes, nose, or mouth — only lines or folds where features should be
Clawed hands
Holding an object like a rifle or baton over its left shoulder
The humanoid walked roughly a meter away from the craft and approached the boys. It then tapped Katsuhiro on the shoulder twice. The boy froze in place, terrified and unable to move. Masato had to physically carry his friend on his back as they ran back home — just 30 meters away.
Inside the craft, the boys reported seeing a second, smaller humanoid, seated at what looked like a control panel or lever.
Adult Witnesses & Physical Evidence
When the boys told their mothers what they’d seen, the women immediately accompanied them back to the vineyard. There, they saw the strange orange light still glowing in the vineyard, pulsing for about five minutes before suddenly flying away — right when they looked away.
The next morning, in daylight, physical traces were discovered at the site:
Two concrete support poles used for vineyard vines were tilted or knocked down
A circular impression in the soil where the craft had allegedly landed
Vegetation in the landing area appeared slightly withered
School officials later measured and photographed the area
Local newspapers began covering the story, leading to a small media frenzy
Investigation & Public Reaction
The boys' school — Yamashiro Elementary — took the report seriously. Teachers conducted their own interviews and allowed the children to draw what they saw. When the sketches were posted on the wall, other students became excited and scared. The principal, Nobuyoshi Kaneko, organized a visit to the site with tape measures and sketchbooks.
Additional witness: Another classmate, Ichiro Minegishi, said he saw a bright orange light flying toward the vineyard from a car earlier that evening — around 6:30 PM — corroborating the boys’ timeline.
Japanese UFO researchers, including Masaru Mori, interviewed the children and visited the site. Some believe the beings were collecting plant samples or investigating human presence. No evidence of hoaxing was ever found.
A brief statement from the Civil Aviation Bureau suggested the boys may have seen aircraft lights — but this explanation was quickly dismissed. The YS-11 aircraft (a Japanese-made turboprop) could be seen in the skies around 6–7 PM, but did not match the described descent, landing, or silent departure.
Hypnosis & Aftereffects
No hypnosis was ever administered to the boys — but their stories remained consistent over time, even when interviewed separately. Katsuhiro, the one who had been touched, later said he felt “numb” and “blank” for hours afterward. Both boys were reportedly afraid to sleep alone for weeks.
No physical injury was reported, and no radiation testing was done — but the emotional impact was significant.
The Strange Details
The Kofu case stands out for a few reasons:
The non-standard being: not a “Grey,” but a small creature with fangs, clawed hands, and no mouth
The symbols on the craft — common in CE3 cases, but never deciphered
The second occupant — suggesting teamwork or a structured crew
The tactile interaction — a physical touch that caused visible fear, possibly paralysis
Adult witnesses saw the light and its behavior, strengthening credibility
Was It Ever Debunked?
No.
Skeptics have offered possible misidentifications — airplanes, balloons, or imagination — but:
Multiple witnesses (children and adults) saw a craft or light
The landing site had physical changes
The children’s stories remained stable, and their reactions were genuine
No evidence of a hoax or mischief was ever found
The case remains officially unsolved, but not discredited by serious researchers.
Why It’s Still Important
Despite being one of Japan’s most famous UFO encounters, the Kofu Incident is almost never discussed outside of Japanese UFO literature. It’s a rare example of:
A close-range sighting with occupants
Physical interaction with a witness
Corroborating adult testimony and physical evidence
A credible, pre-internet-era case without media contamination
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