Police recognize woman as 17th N. Korea abduction victim

TOKYO, Japan - The National Police Agency said on Nov. 17 it has formally recognized Kyoko Matsumoto (photo), a woman who has been missing since 1977, as the 17th Japanese victim of North Korean abduction. Matsumoto went missing after leaving home in Yonago, Tottori Prefecture, on the Sea of Japan coast, at around 8 p.m. on Oct. 21, 1977, saying she was going to a knitting class. She was then 29.

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