U.S. Marine Indicted on Murder and Robbery Charges Over Woman's Death in Okinawa

Japanese prosecutors have formally indicted a U.S. Marine on charges of murder and robbery in connection with the death of a woman on Okinawa, a court spokesman said on Monday. The case has provoked public outrage and renewed debate over the large American military footprint on the southern Japanese island.

A spokesman for the district court in Naha confirmed that the indictment was filed on October 25. The confirmation matched earlier media reports about the charges against the suspect.

Okinawa prefectural police arrested the 20-year-old Marine, who is stationed at Futenma Air Station. They say he strangled Anna Yagi, 39, at a hotel in Naha, the island's capital. The Yomiuri Shimbun reported, citing the indictment document, that the woman was strangled with a telephone cord on Oct. 3. The Marine is also accused of taking a backpack that held her wallet and other belongings.

He denied the allegations when he was arrested. According to the Yomiuri and other outlets, which cited investigative sources, he has since made statements suggesting some involvement in the case.

Japan's prime minister sharply criticized the alleged killing. Foreign Minister Toshimitsu Motegi said officials were reviewing arrangements for U.S. personnel off base. The high-level talks with Washington will look at off-duty conduct and the "liberty" policy that governs the private activities of American service members outside their bases. "We plan to hold discussions including whether the existing rules are effectively functioning," Motegi said, adding that "matters such as patrols and curfew management" would be part of the review.

The current policy was updated in 2024 after a series of sexual assaults by U.S. military personnel on Okinawa. It bars service members from drinking in public off base between 1 a.m. and 5 a.m., and from visiting bars during those hours. After the Marine's arrest, the U.S. military introduced measures to reinforce discipline and standards, followed by a month-long curfew.

Crimes involving U.S. personnel have long strained ties between the two close security allies. Prefectural police said arrests tied to U.S. service members and their families exceeded 100 last year. In that year, a Japanese court also sentenced a U.S. Marine accused of choking and attempting to rape a woman in her 20s. In 2017, a former Marine who worked as a civilian base employee was convicted over the killing of a local woman on Okinawa. That same year, U.S. Forces Japan banned all personnel from drinking alcohol after an intoxicated Marine crashed into a mini-truck and killed its 61-year-old local driver.

Once a suspect is formally indicted in Japan, the conviction rate exceeds 99%. The justice ministry attributes this to prosecutors pursuing only cases they are confident of winning.

Okinawa was under U.S. occupation from the end of World War II until 1972, and it hosts 70% of America's military facilities in Japan despite making up just 0.6% of the country's land area. Most of the roughly 54,000 U.S. troops based in Japan are stationed there. Japan regained its sovereignty under the San Francisco Peace Treaty of 1952, but Okinawa stayed under American control and became a hub of military build-up. Its return to Japan in 1972 did little to reduce the number of bases, leaving the island with a disproportionate burden. Okinawa has for years urged other regions of Japan to share it.