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May 4, 2000: Miss Blackman arrives in Tokyo after giving up her job with British Airways to travel around Asia.
July 1: She vanishes after telling a friend she was going out for the afternoon with a man.
July 2: The same friend receives a call from a man calling himself Akira Takagi, who says Miss Blackman has joined a religious cult and would not be seen again.
July 3: Blackman family is told that Miss Blackman has not been seen for two days.
July 4: Her younger sister, Sophie, flies to Japan to try to find her.
July 12: Miss Blackman's father, Tim, 47, arrives in Tokyo.
 Lucie Blackman had been missing since July |
July 15: Mr Blackman meets Foreign Secretary Robin Cook, in Japan for a summit. He urges the Japanese public to help in the hunt.
July 18: Nationwide appeals prompt 100 calls from the public. Mr Blackman and Sophie carry out their own investigations, establishing an office in Tokyo and a confidential hotline, staffed by ex-pats. The family offer a �9,500 reward for Miss Blackman's release, later increased to �100,000 by an anonymous businessman.
July 21: Prime Minister Tony Blair meets the Blackmans during a flying visit to Tokyo and promises to raise the matter with his Japanese counterpart.
August 1: Tokyo police receive a letter from someone purporting to be Miss Blackman, which says: "I am doing what I want so please leave me alone." Detectives and her father dismiss it as a fake.
August 23: A Japanese businessman questioned by police about Miss Blackman's disappearance is reportedly found dead in an apartment with a missing person poster of her.
 Tim Blackman searched in vain for his daughter |
September 3: Miss Blackman's mother, Jane, discloses that Sir Richard Branson has secretly funded a 30-second information appeal to be screened in Japanese cinemas.
September 20: Mr Blackman flies back to England, having spent tens of thousands of pounds in the unsuccessful search for his daughter.
October 11: Police question businessman Joji Obara, now on trial over a series of rapes, over Miss Blackman's disappearance.
November 11: Obara admits having met Miss Blackman but denies playing any part in her disappearance.
February 9, 2001: Police find parts of a body buried in a cave on a beach near Obara's seaside home, close to Tokyo.
February 10: Police confirm that the human remains are those of Miss Blackman, ending a seven-month search by her shattered family.
April 6: Police charge Joji Obara with raping and fatally assaulting Miss Blackman.
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