A US Marine has been arrested on suspicion of robbing and murdering a woman at a hotel in Naha, the capital of Japan's Okinawa prefecture, triggering a formal diplomatic protest from Tokyo.
Okinawa prefectural police arrested Lance Corporal Devin Jacob Ballard, 20, stationed at US Marine Corps Air Station Futenma, in the early hours of Saturday. The victim was identified as Anna Yagi, 39. The suspect has denied the charges.
Police said the woman's body was found in her hotel room and she appeared to have been strangled. Officers arrested Ballard after spotting him walking alone in Naha's entertainment district late Saturday. Her wallet and backpack were reported missing.
Security camera footage showed a man believed to be the suspect entering the hotel with the victim and later leaving alone, apparently carrying the woman's belongings.
Japan's Foreign Minister Toshimitsu Motegi summoned US Ambassador George Glass to his office on Sunday and conveyed Tokyo's "outrage" over the incident. Glass pledged full cooperation with the investigation and expressed condolences to the victim's family.
Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi described the crime as "extremely brutal and heinous" and said her government had lodged a strong protest with the United States. "As the Government of Japan, we have lodged a strong protest with the US side, while firmly demanding maximum cooperation with the investigation," she wrote on social media. She also urged Washington to enforce stricter discipline among its personnel.
Defence Minister Shinjiro Koizumi said the incident was "utterly inexcusable." "Incidents and accidents involving US military personnel cause significant anxiety to the local community and must never occur," he wrote on social media.
The US Marine Corps confirmed Ballard is assigned to the III Marine Expeditionary Force on Okinawa and stated it is fully cooperating with Japanese authorities. "The Marine Corps takes these allegations very seriously and expects every Marine to adhere to the highest standards of behavior," the Corps said in a statement.
Okinawa Governor Genta Koja said the case "deals a major shock and adds fear to the Okinawans who have already been forced to live next to US bases." He said the alleged crime demonstrated that US military discipline and personnel education were failing. "I must say, discipline and troop education are not working at all," Koja told reporters.
Japan hosts approximately 50,000 to 54,000 US military personnel under a bilateral security pact, with roughly half stationed on Okinawa. The island, which came under US administrative control at the end of World War II and was returned to Japan in 1972, is home to several major American bases, including Futenma, located in a densely populated area of central Okinawa.
Okinawans have long complained about noise, pollution, and crime linked to the US military presence. The number of arrests related to US service members and their families exceeded 100 last year, according to prefectural police. Since Okinawa's return to Japan, approximately 6,000 US military personnel have been arrested on the island, according to local reports.
The latest case comes as Prime Minister Takaichi's government pushes to strengthen Japan's military presence on Okinawa and deepen cooperation with US forces, amid growing regional tensions with China.
