Overview
- Okinawa Prefectural Police filed documents on November 7 sending a U.S. Navy serviceman in his 20s for prosecution on suspicion of non-consensual indecent assault.
- The case stems from a June incident outdoors on Okinawa’s main island in which an unrelated Japanese teenage female was allegedly touched without consent.
- According to police, the girl sought help and the suspect fled; investigators identified a suspect using nearby security camera footage.
- Authorities have not disclosed whether the serviceman has admitted or denied the allegation, and his custody remains under U.S. military control while police conducted voluntary interviews.
- On November 10, the prefectural government pressed the U.S. Navy and national agencies for concrete prevention steps, citing police data showing 82 cases involving U.S. personnel and families through October despite joint patrols begun in April, surpassing last year’s 73.