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Netflix documentary Missing: The Lucie Blackman Case recounts Sevenoaks woman’s disappearance

A new documentary recounting the disappearance of a Kent woman who was killed working abroad has landed on Netflix.

Lucie Blackman, from Sevenoaks, was working as a hostess in a bar in Tokyo, Japan, when she vanished in July 2000.

Lucie Blackman went missing in July 2000. Picture: PA
Lucie Blackman went missing in July 2000. Picture: PA

Her dismembered body was found in a beach-side cave seven months later.

The true crime documentary titled ‘Missing: The Lucie Blackman Case’ is currently the top film on the global streaming site and discusses her disappearance in depth, as well as the huge international investigation that followed.

The 21-year-old, who was a former British Airways stewardess, had moved to Japan with her friend Louise Phillips and the pair got jobs as hostesses at the Casablanca bar in Roppongi, a lively entertainment district in Tokyo.

On July 1, 2000, just three weeks after they left, Louise realised her friend hadn’t been seen since going on a date with a man the night before.

The next day she got a call from a man claiming Lucie had joined a cult and was told she would not see her friend again – this is when she called Lucie’s family.

In the documentary, Tim Blackman recounts the moment he found out about his daughter’s disappearance.

“That feeling of complete blind panic just crashes in on you...”

He said: “I was sitting in the garden at home and I got a telephone call to say that my daughter Lucy had gone missing. My first reaction was ‘well how do you know she’s gone missing?’

“I was immediately thinking there must be some rational explanation, there must be some reason why she’s not being able to get in touch.

“There were three or four more calls and I knew there was something that had gone wrong.

“That feeling of complete blind panic just crashes in on you.”

A few days after getting the initial phone call, Tim flew out to Tokyo with Lucie’s younger sister Sophie and they held a press conference.

Thousands of missing person posters were put around the city and a businessman offered a £100,000 reward for her safe return.

Lucie Blackman was only 21 when she was killed. Picture: Mike Gunnill
Lucie Blackman was only 21 when she was killed. Picture: Mike Gunnill

During the search, a fake letter was sent to police claiming to be from Lucie, telling them to stop looking for her.

After being questioned, Korean-Japanese property developer Joji Obara admitted to meeting with Lucie and having drinks in an apartment with her.

This led to three women coming forward, who claimed to have woken up sore and sick in Obara's bed, with no memory of the previous evening.

Lucie’s body was found on Febuary 9, 2001, a few hundred yards away from Obara’s house.

She had been cut in eight and her head was encased in concrete.

In April 2002, Obara was arrested in connection with Lucie's death and charged with abduction, rape resulting in death, and the disposal of her body.

However, he was acquitted of raping and killing Lucie in 2007.

Lucie Blackman's body was discovered in a beach-side cave
Lucie Blackman's body was discovered in a beach-side cave

The judge said there was no proof Obara alone was responsible for her death.

He was however charged with raping eight other women as well as with the 1992 murder of Australian backpacker Carita Ridgway.

Obara was jailed for life after being found guilty of multiple rapes and rape resulting in death in the case of Ridgway.

The judge said it was clear Lucie and Obara were together before she vanished and then died but he said this was not enough to secure a conviction.

After the verdict, Mr Blackman told the BBC he felt his daughter had been "robbed of justice" and said prosecutors should "strongly consider" an appeal.

In 2008, prosecutors launched an appeal and the Tokyo High Court ruled that Obara was guilty of abduction, dismemberment, and the disposal of Lucie's body.

He remains in prison.

Following his daughter’s death, Mr Blackman launched The Lucie Blackman Trust promoting safety and awareness for young women and travellers.

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