TOKYO — October 4, 2026 — A United States Marine stationed on Japan’s southern island of Okinawa was arrested on Sunday on suspicion of murdering a Japanese national, local police confirmed.
The suspect is accused of killing the 39-year-old woman at a hotel in Naha and stealing her wallet on Saturday, a police spokesman told AFP. According to investigation sources cited by public broadcaster NHK, CCTV footage captured a foreign man entering a room with the victim before later leaving with her belongings. Officers subsequently located a 20-year-old man matching the description in the footage and took him into custody at a local police station after he agreed to accompany them voluntarily. He has reportedly denied the charges.
US Ambassador George Glass addressed the incident via social media, stating he had spoken with Japan’s foreign ministry and the Okinawa governor to offer sincere condolences and pledge full cooperation as the investigation proceeds.
Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi condemned the crime as “exceptionally brutal and vicious.” She stated that the government has urged Washington to provide maximum cooperation with investigators, enforce stricter discipline among US military personnel, and implement thorough measures to prevent similar offenses in the future.
Approximately 54,000 US military personnel are stationed in Japan, the majority of them on Okinawa. Crimes committed by US service members, including assaults, hit-and-run incidents, and drink-driving accidents, have long fueled protests in the region and remain a persistent strain on relations between the two close security allies.
The arrest adds to a history of incidents involving US troops. Last year, a Japanese court sentenced a US Marine to seven years in prison for choking and attempting to rape a woman in her 20s. In 2017, a former US Marine and civilian base worker received a life sentence for the rape and murder of an Okinawan woman. Later that same year, US Forces Japan prohibited all personnel from consuming alcohol following a fatal drunk-driving crash in which a Marine struck a mini-truck, killing its 61-year-old driver.