US Marine Accused of Murdering, Robbing Japanese Woman

A U.S. Marine based in Okinawa was arrested on suspicion of robbing and murdering a Japanese woman in Naha, the capital of the southernmost prefecture.

Lance Corporal Devin Jacob Ballard, a 20-year-old stationed at the Futenma Air Station, is suspected of killing 39-year-old Anna Yagi inside a hotel on Saturday, according to the Okinawa Prefectural Police Department.

Police said security camera footage allegedly showed him entering the hotel with the victim and exiting alone with her wallet and backpack in the early morning hours of Oct. 3.

The Kyodo News agency reported that the victim’s body was found after she appeared to have been strangled in her hotel room.

Ballard denied the allegations against him, police said.

An investigation into the events surrounding the night is still underway.

Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi expressed her condolences to the victim’s family in a Sunday post on X. 

“The occurrence of such an extremely brutal and heinous incident is a matter of profound regret, and as the Government of Japan, we have lodged a strong protest with the U.S. side, while firmly demanding maximum cooperation with the investigation, strict discipline among U.S. military personnel, and thorough measures to prevent the recurrence of such incidents and accidents,” Takaichi wrote. 

Takaichi added that the government plans to address the case with “the utmost care and diligence.”

Defense Minister Shinjiro Koizumi called the incident unacceptable.

“I am deeply outraged,” Koizumi said in comments that aired on Japan’s national broadcaster NHK.

First Lt. Tyler N. Thomas, a spokesperson for the III Marine Expeditionary Force, confirmed in a statement on Oct. 3 that the United States was actively cooperating with Japanese authorities.

“We extend our deepest condolences to the victim’s family and friends,” Thomas added.

“The Marine Corps takes these allegations very seriously and expects every Marine to adhere to the highest standards of behavior.”

Thomas, who did not name Ballard in the statement, said the Marine was in custody during the investigation and did not have additional information to release.

The Epoch Times reached out to the III Marine Expeditionary Force for additional information.

Around 18,000 Marines based in Japan are stationed in ​Okinawa, which has been a sensitive issue for locals over the course of many decades.

In 2017, a Japanese court in Naha convicted Kenneth Shinzato, a former Marine and U.S. military contractor, of murder and rape charges in the death of an Okinawa woman and sentenced him to life in prison.

In 1995, mass protests occurred after three U.S. servicemen raped a 12-year-old Okinawan girl. The men were sentenced to more than 6 years in prison.

Reuters contributed to this report.