US Marine arrested over alleged murder of Japanese woman; embassy vows cooperation

A 20-year-old US Marine stationed at Futenma Air Station was arrested on suspicion of murdering a 39-year-old Japanese woman. According to Okinawa prefectural police, the Marine, identified as Davin Ballard, is suspected of killing Anna Yagi and stealing her wallet and backpack at a hotel in Naha.

The police said Ballard was seen entering the hotel with Yagi, who was found dead on Saturday morning. Ballard denied the charges. He was detained by a police officer when walking alone on a street in Naha's entertainment district late Saturday.

The US Ambassador to Japan, George Glass, spoke with Japanese Vice Foreign Minister Takehiro Funakoshi, pledging full cooperation with the investigation. Glass also offered condolences to Okinawa Governor Genta Koja, vowing to take measures to prevent a recurrence. The police will investigate the case in cooperation with the US military.

Brief written by urgent.news from Hindustan Times - World News, The Mainichi — 2 reports on this story. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.