Japan Protests to U.S. After Marine Arrested on Suspicion of Murder in Okinawa

A U.S. Marine stationed at Futenma Air Station has been arrested in Okinawa on suspicion of killing a 39-year-old woman and taking her wallet and backpack, Japanese police said. The 20-year-old was detained after the woman was found dead at a hotel in Naha. The allegations have not been tested in court. The case has prompted an official protest from Tokyo. Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi said Japan demanded full cooperation with the investigation and stronger preventive measures. Japan’s Defense Ministry said it also called for support for the victim’s family, full assistance to investigators and renewed discipline measures in a meeting with the U.S. forces commander in Japan. U.S. officials have said they are cooperating with Japanese authorities. The arrest has intensified a long-running dispute over the U.S. military presence on Okinawa. The island hosts about half of the roughly 50,000 U.S. troops stationed in Japan, and residents have raised concerns for decades about noise, pollution, accidents and crimes involving service members. The 1995 rape of a 12-year-old girl by three U.S. servicemen led to mass protests. Plans to relocate Futenma to Henoko have also faced sustained local opposition and years of delay. Okinawa Governor Genta Koja called the latest case “absolutely unforgivable” and said residents were outraged, AP reported. The investigation is still under way; the arrest is an allegation, not a finding of guilt. The case now tests whether official promises of cooperation and prevention can address local anger while Japan and the United States continue to treat Okinawa as central to their security alliance. Sources: [Associated Press](https://apnews.com/article/japan-us-marine-crime-okinawa-e2ba88380a55f9b8af559dd616b92b11) · [Japan Ministry of Defense statement, Oct. 4](https://www.mod.go.jp/j/press/kisha/2026/1004b_r.html). Image: AP Photo/Hiro Komae (file), Marine Corps Air Station Futenma, Feb. 18, 2025.