A UFO and Creature Encounter Report From Kofu, Japan

by Charles Lear

In 1975, two seven-year-old boys in Kofu, Japan, reported an encounter with a flying saucer and its occupants. They were taken seriously, and an investigation revealed not only other witnesses, but also physical evidence to back up their story. The case was re-examined almost 40 years later by investigators from the Space Phenomena Observatory Center, and in their opinion, still holds up. A report was given to the Aerial Phenomena Research Organization and the Center for UFO Studies by Matsushito Hayashi of the Japan Space Phenomena Association. Both organizations provided summaries (APRO here on page 5; and CUFOS here on page 13) in their publications. A two-part article using extensive Japanese sources was written by Otakupapa. It is titled Kofu Incident: A Creepy Alien Got Off a UFO and Tapped a Japanese Boy on the Shoulder and is posted on otakupapa.net.

According to the article, on Sunday, February 23, 1975, Masato Kono and Katushiro Yamahata were roller-skating on a concrete slab in a vacant lot at around 6:30 p.m. Looking up, they saw two lights moving towards them from the east. According to the version of events in one of Otakupapa’s sources (Kubota, Hachiro UFO to Uchu (UFOs & Space) June 1975, NO.12, 8-17, Universe Publishing Co.), the lights were seen by the boys to be orange objects as they got closer. At this point the boys could see that the objects were circular with three spinning structures on the bottom. The boys’ descriptions of the objects are very much like the “classic” Adamski-type saucer. According to writer Hiroshi Minamiyama (Otakupapa’s other source for this moment in the story) only one object came over to the boys while the other one flew off.

As the objects (Kubota’s version) hovered over their heads, a tube came out of the bottom of one of them with “clattering noises twice.” It then made a noise like a camera shutter. The boys got the idea that the tube was some sort of weapon. They took off their skates and ran for cover in a nearby graveyard.

Hiding behind tombstones, the boys watched the saucers, which were still hovering. One of the saucers was larger that the other and it flew off to the northeast while the smaller one moved towards a vineyard.

The boys headed for Kono’s home in the Hinode Complex. According to Otakupapa, the boys said in an interview with Shinichiro Namiki and Matsushito Hayashi of the JSPS, that when they got to the road on the west side of the complex, they saw what they thought was a red flame up ahead. They ran down the road, which led to a dirt road that led to some vineyards. Because it was winter, there were no grapevines on the vine support cables being held up by the many rows of concrete poles.

The boys saw a red light flickering in one of the vineyards and got to within a few dozen yards (meters). It then moved sideways to the center of the vineyard and turned into a pale light. “The object” flew up to a substantial height and then came back down through a gap in the vine supports and landed in the middle of the vineyard.

Otakupapa also presents Kubota’s version, in which the boys saw an orange light in the center of the vineyard that blinked on and off repeatedly and then faded.

Otkupapa makes note of the discrepancies and sticks to Kubota’s version from here on.

The boys now saw a silver flying saucer that was 8 feet in diameter and 5 feet tall (2.5 meters and 1.5 meters) in the middle of the vineyard and were curious enough to forget their former fears. They described it as having a dome on top sitting on what looked like an upside down plate. Surrounding the dome were several square “shining” blue windows.

The boys said there was no sound from the craft or in the area and that sand flew up as they were looking at it. They observed it for about 5 minutes.

Kono, on the east side of the craft, saw black characters that looked like hieroglyphics on the craft’s body. They seemed to be stickers. Kono assumed these “space characters,” as the boys called them, spelled out “flying saucer.” Yamahata tried to sketch the characters but had trouble remembering exactly what they looked like.

As Kono stood looking at the characters, he heard a sound like a lock being opened, and a door swung down that had a staircase on its inside. Kono said the inside of the craft was filled with machinery, instruments, and flashing red, blue, and green lights. In the midst of this, there was a humanoid creature about 4 ½ feet tall (1.35 meters). Kono described it as having a brown head with no hair and no eyes or nose. Rather than a face, it had a series of horizontal wrinkles the size of a pinky finger and it seemed if it might have been wearing a mask. Where its mouth would be, there were three silver, metallic, fang-like features about two inches (5.08 cm) long. It had large rabbit-like ears with a hole in the middle of each one, and its head and shoulders were bigger in proportion to the rest of its body than a human’s would be. It had four-fingered hands that were brown and wrinkled like the front of its head. It was wearing a one-piece silver suit with a gray belt and had two-toed shoes. On the back of the suit, there was what looked like a zipper, and the neck seemed to connect to what might have been a mask on its head. It was carrying what looked like a gun with an end like a trumpet bell.

The creature came down the stairs. Its legs were bowed as it walked, and Kono said he didn’t hear any sound as it did so. A feeling of dread came over Kono as the creature stood in front of him.

Yamahata was on the other side of the craft at that time. He heard a clatter on Kono’s side and went around to investigate. He was tapped twice on his right shoulder and he turned around to see the same creature Kono had just seen. The creature emitted a strange sound like a tape recorder being played at a high speed. Both boys thought it was trying to say hello, and when asked if it spoke Japanese, Kono said no.

Yamahata was terrified. He collapsed and pretended to be dead. He opened his eyes slightly and watched the creature walk around at a fast pace as if it was making observations of the area around the craft.

Kono came running from the other side. He helped Yamahata up and told him to run. Yamahata was too scared to move, so Kono put him on his back and carried him. When they got to the end of the vineyard, Kono put his friend down and they turned around. They were able to see inside of the saucer and saw another creature, just like the first, sitting in a chair and holding a joystick in front of a monitor screen. The creature turned and looked at them, and they both ran away.

When they got to Kono’s home, they excitedly told their parents (Yamahata’s parents were over for dinner) about their experience, and Kono’s mother scolded them for being late. She thought they had made up their story as an excuse, but the boys surprised her by insisting it was true. They started tugging on their mothers, pleading with them to come out to the vineyard and see for themselves.

Next week: The boys are taken seriously and an investigation ensues.