The Okinawa Prefectural Police headquarters in Naha city, Okinawa, is pictured on April 24, 2025. (Keishi Koja/Stars and Stripes)
CAMP FOSTER, Okinawa — Two U.S. Marines have been accused of sexually assaulting women in separate incidents on Okinawa earlier this year, according to Japanese police — the latest in a string of similar cases stirring public discontent on the island.
Okinawa Prefectural Police forwarded both cases to the Naha Public Prosecutors Office on April 7, a police spokesman said by phone Thursday.
In the first case, a Marine in his 20s was suspected of sexually assaulting a woman older than 20 in January, the spokesman said.
Prosecutors on Thursday decided against formal charges, without stating a reason, the Ryukyu Shimpo newspaper reported that afternoon.
In the second case, a Marine in his 20s is suspected of sexually assaulting a woman older than 20 and injuring a second woman, also older than 20, in March, the spokesman said.
Both Marines are under U.S. administration, he added without elaborating. He declined to provide further details, citing the ongoing investigation.
Some Japanese government officials may speak to the media only on condition of anonymity.
The Marine Corps is cooperating with police investigators, Marine Corps Installations Pacific spokesman 1st Lt. Grant Hoel told Stars and Stripes by email Thursday.
Both incidents occurred on a U.S. base in the central part of Okinawa, according to the Ryukyu Shimpo report, citing unnamed officials.
The Marine in the March incident is accused of sexually assaulting a Japanese civilian employee in an on-base bathroom, Japanese public broadcaster NHK reported Thursday, citing unnamed sources involved in the investigation. The second woman was injured while trying to help the employee, the report said.
Another unidentified Marine “heard the victim in distress and rushed to assist, preventing possible further action by the alleged perpetrator,” Hoel wrote in a subsequent email. The accused Marine is confined in the Camp Hansen brig, he added.
Hoel declined to provide further details, citing the ongoing investigation.
“We will work closely with our Japanese allies to ensure U.S. personnel maintain the highest standards of behavior and conduct in support of our mutual security,” he said.
The latest cases follow continued public outcry over a U.S. airman’s December conviction for sexual assault of a minor, and two unrelated sexual assault cases still pending against U.S. service members.
Senior Airman Brennon R.E. Washington was convicted of kidnapping and sexually assaulting a minor in 2023. He was sentenced to five years in prison with labor and has appealed the verdict.
In the other cases, two Marine lance corporals are awaiting trial in Japanese courts — one is charged with sexual assault and the other with attempted sexual assault.
In response to those allegations, U.S. Forces Japan imposed new liberty restrictions in October, barring U.S. troops from off-base drinking establishments between 1 a.m. and 5 a.m.
On Friday, representatives of U.S. commands joined Okinawa police and government officials for a joint patrol of a nightlife district outside Kadena Air Base — the first such patrol on the island since 1974, according to prefectural police.
Okinawa Gov. Denny Tamaki on Wednesday called on the U.S. military to educate its personnel and further tighten liberty restrictions, according to a statement emailed Thursday by a prefectural spokeswoman.
U.S. Ambassador to Japan George Glass said he is “deeply concerned” about the incidents, according to a news release Wednesday from the U.S. Embassy Tokyo.
“We deeply value the ties of trust and friendship we have built over many decades with our Japanese hosts, and I am committed to doing everything I can to prevent actions that may jeopardize these bonds,” he said.
