A US soldier has been charged with the kidnapping and rape of a teenage girl in Okinawa, a Japanese island chain that hosts the region’s largest American military base.
The case is likely to stoke the long-standing local opposition to US military presence – the islands are home to more than half of the 54,000 US soldiers serving in Japan.
The anger has also been fuelled by sexual assault cases – one of the most high-profile was in 1995, when a 12-year-old girl was raped by three US service personnel, sparking months-long protests.
The latest allegation also involves a minor, who is younger than 16, the age of consent in Japan.
The 25-year-old Air Force man allegedly assaulted her on 24 December and he was identified through security camera footage after the girl’s family reported it, local media said.
He was charged in late March and has been in the custody of Japanese authorities since then, government spokesman Yoshimasa Hayashi said on Tuesday when he revealed the charges to the public.
“We will continue to request the US side to prevent such incidents at every opportunity,” Mr Hayashi said, adding that US officials were cooperating fully with investigators.
He also said Japan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs has complained to the US Ambassador to Japan, Rahm Emmanuel. He added that the first hearing in the case is scheduled for 12 July.
The case is “not just disturbing… but also a violation of the girl’s dignity”, and “brought a significant level of distrust”, Okinawa governor Denny Tamaki said.
Local media reported that the soldier was off duty when he allegedly approached the girl at a park and asked her to get into his car so they could talk. He then drove her to his home where he allegedly raped her.
Japan hosts one of the world’s largest American military forces outside the US.
About 30,000 American soldiers are stationed across Okinawa, where the US has kept military bases since defeating Japan in World War Two.
The bases have become increasingly strategic for Washington because Okinawa’s proximity to Taiwan allows the US to respond quickly to any Chinese threat.
