Okinawa, Japani: U.S.A.:n sotilaan epäillään ryöstäneen ja surmanneen naisen

[Luupää]

https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/news/20261004de54217/

US Marine arrested for alleged robbery-murder in Okinawa

4.10.2026

Police in Okinawa, southwestern Japan, have arrested a US Marine stationed in the prefecture on suspicion of killing and robbing a local woman. The police say the woman died from suffocation.

The suspect is 20-year-old Devin Jacob Ballard, who is stationed at US Marine Corps Air Station Futenma.

He allegedly killed Yagi Anna, a 39-year-old Naha resident, at a hotel in the city some time between around 2 a.m. and 4 a.m. on Saturday. He is also suspected of stealing her wallet and other belongings.

Police say a detailed investigation of the victim's body found that she died from suffocation caused by pressure on the neck.

Security camera footage shows a person entering a hotel room with a woman and later leaving with items.

The hair and tattoos of the person in the footage reportedly resemble those of Ballard.

The Japan-US Status of Forces Agreement stipulates that US authorities have the primary right to exercise jurisdiction over offenses committed by US military personnel while on official duty.

The agreement also states that in the case of offenses committed off-duty, if suspects are in the hands of the United States, they will remain in US custody until they are indicted by the Japanese side.

Ballard was found by police late Saturday night in an entertainment district in Okinawa City, about 18 kilometers away from the hotel. They arrested him as his case is unrelated to official US military duty.

Police say the suspect has denied the allegations, saying he did "not know."


Japan lodges protest over US Marine arrest in Okinawa

Japan has lodged a protest with the United States following the arrest of a US Marine stationed in Okinawa on suspicion of robbery-murder.

Vice-Minister for Foreign Affairs Funakoshi Takehiro expressed his extreme regret and lodged a strong protest during a phone call to US Ambassador to Japan George Glass on Sunday morning.

Funakoshi strongly demanded full cooperation in the investigation and the tightening of discipline by the US military.

In response, Glass expressed deep regret and said his country will fully cooperate with the Japanese authorities' investigation and do everything it can to prevent a recurrence.


PM Takaichi: Japan protests after Okinawa US Marine arrest

Japan's Prime Minister Takaichi Sanae says the Japanese government has lodged a strong protest with the United States following the arrest of a US Marine stationed in Okinawa on suspicion of robbery and murder of a local woman.

Takaichi wrote on social media on Sunday that the occurrence of such an extremely brutal and heinous incident is extremely regrettable.

She also wrote that the government strongly demanded full US cooperation with the investigation, tightening of discipline among US military personnel, and thorough measures to prevent a recurrence of incidents and accidents.

She pledged that the government will do all it can on the matter.

Japan's defense minister also said his ministry has lodged a strong protest with the US side.

Koizumi Shinjiro told reporters in Kanagawa Prefecture on Sunday that he feels indignation, calling the incident outrageous.

He said the defense ministry has requested the US to educate its military personnel and respond swiftly and appropriately to the victim's family.

The minister said incidents and accidents involving US military personnel are cause for serious concern among local residents and must not be allowed to happen.

Koizumi said that the ministry will use various occasions to urge the US to work hard to prevent a recurrence.


US Embassy comments after Marine's arrest in Okinawa

The US Embassy in Japan says the United States is communicating and cooperating with the Japanese side, following the arrest of a US Marine in Okinawa on suspicion of robbing and murdering a local woman.

The embassy posted a comment in English and Japanese on social media on Sunday.

The embassy said, "We are aware that a US service member is in custody," and expressed "sincere condolences" to the victim's family.

It went on to say, "As an investigation is underway to determine the facts of the case, the United States is communicating and cooperating with the Government of Japan and local authorities."

US Ambassador to Japan George Glass also posted on social media that he had spoken with Japan's Foreign Ministry and Okinawa Governor Koja Genta on Sunday morning.

He said he offered his "sincere condolences" and pledged "full cooperation as the investigation continues."

[Luupää]

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Ei ollut ensimmäinen eikä toinenkaan kerta kun Okinawan tukikohdista on niin sanoakseni isketty siviilikohteeseen.

https://www.nytimes.com/2026/10/04/worl ... woman.html

Japan Protests After U.S. Marine Is Accused of Killing Woman in Okinawa

The matter threatened to revive tensions over the American military presence on the Japanese archipelago.

4.10.2026 | Javier C. Hernández

The Japanese government lodged a rare protest against the United States on Sunday after an American Marine was arrested in relation to the death of a woman on the archipelago of Okinawa.

The Marine, Devin J. Ballard, a 20-year-old lance corporal assigned to the Third Marine Expeditionary Force in Okinawa, was being held by the authorities in Naha, Okinawa’s capital, U.S. officials said. He is accused of robbing and killing Anna Yagi, 39, who was found at a hotel in Naha on Saturday morning.

The case threatens to revive concerns about the American military presence in Okinawa, Japan’s southernmost prefecture, which is home to about 30,000 active-duty U.S. personnel. Crimes committed by American service members on Okinawa have been a source of tension between the United States and Japan for decades.

The Japanese Foreign Ministry said on Sunday that it had summoned the U.S. ambassador to Japan, George Glass, to express its concern. American officials said they were aware of the matter and would cooperate with the investigation.

“We extend our sincere condolences to the victim’s family,” the U.S. embassy said in a post on social media.

The Third Marine Expeditionary Force confirmed in a statement on Sunday that a Marine was in custody, adding, “The Marine Corps takes these allegations very seriously and expects every Marine to adhere to the highest standards of behavior.”

Japanese news outlets reported that surveillance footage had shown Lance Corporal Ballard entering the hotel with Ms. Yagi early on Saturday. The police in Okinawa were unavailable for comment.

Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi expressed her condolences to the victim’s family in a statement on social media on Sunday. “The occurrence of such an extremely brutal and heinous incident is a matter of profound regret,” she wrote.

Japan has lodged a complaint with the United States and is demanding maximum cooperation with the investigation, plus measures “to prevent the recurrence of such incidents,” she said.

Genta Koja, a conservative politician, prevailed last month in the governor’s race for Okinawa, a victory for Ms. Takaichi, who is seeking to accelerate a military buildup there to counter China. Mr. Koja ousted an incumbent who had criticized Ms. Takaichi’s defense policies and had opposed the construction of new U.S. armed forces facilities on Okinawa island.

Mr. Koja, in a statement on Sunday, called the killing an “extremely heinous crime.” The episode, he said, “has delivered a profound shock to the prefectural residents who are forced to live side by side with military bases, giving rise to new anxieties.”

“It is utterly unacceptable,” he added, “and I feel intense indignation.”

Okinawa, with a population of 1.5 million, hosts 70 percent of the U.S. bases in Japan, despite accounting for only 0.6 percent of the country’s landmass. The United States seized Okinawa from Japan after World War II; it returned the island in 1972 but has continued to operate bases there. Okinawa is strategically significant because it sits close to China and Taiwan.

A once-prominent pacifist movement on Okinawa, which opposes the U.S. military presence, has lost some influence in recent years amid renewed concerns about China.

In 2017, an Okinawa court sentenced a former U.S. Marine, Kenneth Franklin Shinzato, to life in prison after convicting him of the rape and murder of a 20-year-old Japanese woman, Rina Shimabukuro.

CNN: Japan PM protests to US after Marine arrested on suspicion of murder in Okinawa

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