Reporters covering a U.S. airman’s trial on sexual assault and kidnapping charges wait outside Naha District Court on Okinawa, Oct. 25, 2024. (Keishi Koja/Stars and Stripes)

NAHA CITY, Okinawa — A U.S. airman should serve seven years for sexually assaulting an underage girl on Okinawa in December, a Japanese prosecutor argued in court Friday.

The three-judge panel in Naha presided over by Judge Tetsuro Sato has yet to render a verdict on Senior Airman Brennon Richard Edward Washington, 25, who appeared in court for final arguments in his case.

Washington is charged with sexually assaulting the girl, 15 at the time, after picking her up in a Yomitan park and taking her to his home on Dec. 24.

“I am not guilty,” he told the bench in his own defense Friday. “I did not kidnap; I did not rape.”

But the prosecutor opened his summation by saying the girl provided credible testimony, and the case against Washington is “an undeniable fact.” The prosecutor is identified in court by his last name only, Hisaoka.

The girl, referred to in court as A, testified Aug. 23 that she used English, Japanese and hand gestures to tell Washington she was 15.

A camera in the park recorded “where the girl is showing both hands and doing some gestures,” Hisaoka said.

The girl testified earlier that Washington at his home kissed her with his tongue, penetrated her vagina with his fingers and his tongue and touched her breast underneath her shirt.

She had to repeat “stop” in English and Japanese several times, she testified.

Washington testified Aug. 30 that he believed the girl was 18 and that she gave him consent.

He said he kissed her, touched her vagina and performed oral sex on her but did not penetrate her with any part of his body.

Washington’s testimony was inconsistent, Hisaoka said.

“Washington said that he had no purpose of sexual actions, but it can be seen on camera footage that he was touching A’s hair,” the prosecutor argued. “He also explained that he talked to A because she looked sad, but he did not explain why he took her to his house.”

The girl also testified that Washington fondled and kissed her in July 2023 outside a convenience store and invited her to his house nearby, but she refused.

She recognized Washington in December when he brought her to the same house, she said.

Washington’s defense attorney argued that the girl kept changing her version of events.

“She said during the interrogations that she was traumatized by being kissed and touched by a foreigner,” the attorney said. “But in other interrogations she only said that she was hugged and touched. Why would she forget to say something that traumatized her?”

He also argued that testimony from the girl’s mother is also unreliable. The two had fought prior to the December incident without reconciling.

“She did not know how to do that, and said that she was raped to protect herself,” the attorney said.

Other adults were present in the park where Washington and the girl met, and she “had the chance to run away,” the attorney said.

As the hearing concluded, Washington said he has lost “so much” money and time over the case, and that “many bad things happened” to him.

“Everything has been taken away from me, and for this to happen to me is not right because I did not commit this crime,” he said. “My name is all over the world in such a bad way.”

Washington is slated to return to court at 2 p.m. Dec. 13, at which time a verdict will be rendered.

The charges against Washington and a Marine lance corporal indicted in July in a separate case of attempted sexual assault outraged Okinawa government officials. They lodged formal complaints with the Japanese government, U.S. military commands and U.S. Embassy Tokyo.

In September, another Marine lance corporal was charged with sexual assault that injured a woman.

The allegations against service members prompted U.S. Forces Japan to amend liberty rules for all service branches across Japan and the Marines on Okinawa to impose gate checks for sobriety.

The Okinawa Prefectural Assembly has called for changes to the status of forces agreement governing the U.S. military population in Japan.