Dad of British teacher, 28, missing in Japan says he's waiting anxiously by phone

A desperate dad is waiting anxiously by the phone for news of his daughter's whereabouts after she went missing in Japan.

Stephen Hodgkinson, from Nottingham, last heard from Alice on Wednesday - the same day she subsequently disappeared.

The 28-year-old teacher, who has been living in Kanagawa, Tokyo, was reported missing after she failed to turn up for work.

Her father received an email from his daughter on June 30, the day after the last confirmed sighting of her - and he said nothing seemed out of the ordinary, reports NottinghamshireLive.

"There was no sign within the email that anything was wrong. It was a normal communication," he said.

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Stephen Hodgkinson said he received an email from his daughter the day after she was seen (Nottinghamshire Live WS)

"There's nothing I can do and I am just waiting by the telephone for news at the moment."

Mr Hodgkinson, who lives in Bestwood Village, said that Alice was happy in Japan and explained she left Nottingham to teach English in Tokyo last March.

"She did a year and liked it so much she decided to stay on for another," he explained.

Friends and colleagues have been handing out posters of Alice in Tokyo (birminghammail WS)

Friends and colleagues of Alice's in Japan are said to be concerned over her disappearance and Mr Hodgkinson said they have been doing what they can to help, but added: "There's still no update or news."

He went on to say the police are in the process of issuing an official poster, while Alice's friends and colleagues are distributing their own posters of her.

Her brother, Peter Hodgkinson, previously issued an appeal to find her.

He said: "I know that the police went round to her home again today (Monday 5th July) so the investigation is continuing."

He added that Nottinghamshire Police are setting up a link with their counterparts in Japan over InterPol to help deliver information and the Foreign Office has also logged the incident.

A spokeswoman for the Foreign Office said: "We are in contact with local authorities in Japan regarding a missing British woman."

Alice is described as being around 5ft 6in tall and a picture shows her with shoulder-length blonde hair.

A spokesperson from Nottinghamshire Police said: “When a person goes missing who is originally from our area we will always seek to work with relevant authorities and support local families to try and trace them.”

People with any information have been asked to contact the Kanagawa Police HQ on 045 - 211 - 1212.