Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi protested to the United States after police arrested a US Marine on suspicion of killing a woman in a Naha hotel and taking her wallet and backpack.
Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi registered a protest with the United States on Sunday after a US Marine was arrested on suspicion of robbing and murdering a Japanese woman in Okinawa, Reuters reported.
Police said Devin Jacob Ballard, 20, is suspected of killing Anna Yagi, 39, in a hotel in Naha on Saturday and taking her wallet and backpack. Ballard denied the allegations, police said.
Takaichi called the incident extremely brutal and regrettable. She said Japan strongly protests and seeks maximum cooperation with the investigation, tighter discipline and measures to prevent a recurrence.
The US embassy and the Marine Corps expressed condolences and said they were cooperating with Japanese authorities. The Marines said the suspect, assigned to the III Marine Expeditionary Force and based at Marine Corps Air Station Futenma, was in Japanese custody.
US bases in Okinawa have long been a source of local resentment over noise, crashes and the conduct of personnel. Reuters noted that the 1995 rape of a 12-year-old girl by three US servicemen sparked mass protests, and that Saturday's killing could complicate plans to move some Marines from Futenma to Henoko.