TOKYO: US service members stationed in Japan’s Okinawa have been placed under a month-long curfew and banned from consuming alcohol following the murder and robbery of a local woman by a US Marine.
Lance Corporal Devin Jacob Ballard, 20, is suspected of killing Anna Yagi, 39, at a hotel in Naha, the capital of Okinawa prefecture, on Saturday and taking her wallet and backpack. Police said Ballard has denied the allegations.
All US military operations on Okinawa will also be suspended for 48 hours while personnel undergo training on standards, discipline and conduct, Lieutenant General Benjamin Watson said in a statement on Tuesday.
“Every interaction with our neighbours either builds or undermines the trust that is essential to our team,” Watson said, adding that damage to that trust affects the strength of the US-Japan alliance and regional security.
‘Brutal and heinous’
Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi described the killing as “extremely brutal and heinous” and said she had strongly protested to the United States while demanding measures to prevent similar incidents in the future.
According to police, Yagi died of asphyxiation after Ballard allegedly pressed on her neck. Hotel staff found the woman unconscious in her room early Saturday after she failed to check out.
Local media reported that around 200 police officers were involved in searching for Ballard after CCTV footage showed him entering the hotel with Yagi.
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The incident has triggered protests in Naha and Tokyo and is expected to further intensify longstanding concerns among Okinawa residents over the large US military presence on the island.
Okinawa Governor Genta Koja is due to meet Takaichi on Wednesday to discuss the government’s response to the killing.
Longstanding tensions
Japan hosts the largest overseas contingent of US forces, with most of the approximately 18,000 US Marines stationed in Okinawa.
The US military presence has repeatedly fuelled resentment among residents over aircraft noise, accidents and alleged misconduct by service members.
The issue has been particularly sensitive since the 1995 rape of a 12-year-old Okinawan girl by three US servicemen, which sparked mass protests.
Saturday’s killing could also complicate Takaichi’s efforts to relocate some Marines from the heavily populated Futenma air base to a facility at Henoko. Opponents of the plan have called for US troops to be removed from Okinawa altogether.
