When 21-year-old British Airways flight attendant Lucie Blackman went missing in 2000, her name was headline news. Lucie had decided to take a year out from work and live in Tokyo for a year but after getting there, her life, and that of her family and friends, would change forever.
The case of Lucie's disappearance is now the subject of the Netflix film, Missing, which details the tragic story of what happened to her. The film explores the case through the lens of a group of fiercely determined detectives and Lucie's father, who never gave up on getting to the bottom of what happened to his daughter.
As the synopsis explains, Missing shows how "their journey against the clock takes them through the seedy heart of Tokyo's dark underbelly and ultimately to the tragic truth about her brutal murder at the hands of one of the country's most reprehensible sexual predators."
What happened to Lucie Blackman?
In 2000, Lucie decided to leave her stable job as a British Airways flight attendant and take a gap year to live in Tokyo with her friend, with the hopes of exploring and working in the fast-paced, exciting capital of Japan. But three weeks after their arrival, Lucie vanished and the case of her disappearance became headline news.
As the film outlines, Lucie arrived in Tokyo and began working in a bar called Casablanca as a hostess. It was here where she'd meet Joji Obara, a regular client at the high-end club. The pair decided to meet up outside the club but Lucie was then never seen again.
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© TOSHIFUMI KITAMURALucie's roommate and friend she had moved to Japan with, Louise Phillips, had been told she had joined a cult, but an investigation into something more sinister then commenced.
Lucie's father, Tim, outlines in the documentary how he received a phone call a couple of days after his daughter had disappeared. At first, however, he was certain that the matter would be resolved. "I said, 'Well how do you know she is missing?'," before he added: "I immediately thought there must be some rational explanation why she has not got in touch."
© NetflixBut Lucie did not get in touch and, for the next seven months, an international investigation took place to find out what happened to the 21-year-old. Authorities and government officials in the UK, including then-Prime Minister Tony Blair and his Japanese counterpart, made it their priority to find Lucie.
Joji Obara, who was a Japanese-Korean businessman, was made the main suspect in Lucie's disappearance after he admitted to meeting with her on the night of their date, however, he denied involvement in her going missing.
© NetflixIt wasn't until the following year that the harrowing truth came to light. On February 9, 2001, authorities found Lucie's dismembered body close to where Obara's home was located.
Two months later, police arrested Obara and he was charged with the abduction, rape, and disposal of Lucie's body. He was also charged with similar crimes to nine other women including the death of an Australian woman, Carita Ridgeway, between 1992 and 2000.
Where is Joji Obara now?
The trial of Joji Obara went on for five years and in April 2007, he was found guilty and given a life sentence for the rape charges relating to the other victims. However, much to the horror of the Blackman family, the court found him not guilty of the charges against him in relation to Lucie.
However, this decision was appealed and in 2008, the family received a small amount of justice when he was found guilty of the abduction, dismemberment, and disposal of Lucie's body, according to the Independent. But the courts ruled that there was not enough forensic evidence to determine the murder charge.
Obara continues to serve his life sentence in a prison in Japan to this day.
© Getty ImagesWhat has the response been to Missing: The Lucie Blackman Case?
The documentary has received praise for how sensitively Netflix handled the case. Writing on X, formerly known as Twitter, one viewer shared their admiration for the family and friends of Lucie, as well as the detectives who worked on the case, for sharing the harrowing story behind her tragic death.
They wrote: "Just watched this and I have such admiration for Lucie's dad Tim and how strong he was and the Japanese detectives who are so respectful of Lucie's memory year after year. Tastefully done and definitely worth a watch."
© TOSHIFUMI KITAMURAAnother shared on social media: "Found this [film] really interesting. Vaguely recall the 2000 case & this shows how the Japanese investigation took some time but eventually got justice for the family."
A third commented: "#MissingTheLucieBlackmanCase is so awful. I wish victims of violent sexual crime would be taken more seriously. I feel for all the victims and hope they can heal #RIPLucieBlackman."
