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Sakai Family Seeks New Probe After Phone Shows Abusive Messages Weeks Before Girl’s 2019 Death

City will review whether the new material could alter prior findings by a third‑party panel.

Overview

  • The bereaved family submitted a written request to Sakai City on November 27, 2025, calling for a reinvestigation.
  • Newly accessed smartphone data includes classmates’ messages such as “die” and “go to hell” sent roughly three weeks before the suicide attempt.
  • The mother unlocked the phone about a year ago after days of effort and found memos in which the student expressed severe distress.
  • A municipal third‑party committee in 2020 and 2021 recognized four bullying incidents but did not establish a causal link to the death.
  • Sakai’s anti‑bullying and nonattendance support office says it will examine the new information and decide on next steps after its review.