A 22-year-old U.S. Marine was indicted four months earlier for sexual assault that resulted in an injury to a woman in Okinawa Prefecture. Local prosecutors announced on Tuesday, bringing another case of alleged crimes involving U.S. military personnel on the southern part of the island.
In October, the Marine, Jordan Begaye, allegedly assaulted a woman who had no connection with him. As per the indictment and investigation, the victim was injured during the incident.
The prosecutor’s office did not reveal if Begaye had admitted guilt to the charges. They indicted him in December. 23 but stated that they were hesitant to inform the public of the charges “due to the nature of the matter.”
Police said that they also did not disclose the information “in respect of the woman’s privacy.”
A neighbor called the police saying that the woman needed assistance, but Begaye had fled when they arrived on the spot.
After examining the case with the cooperation of both sides, including the U.S. side, the police reported the matter to the prosecutors on the day of Dec. 3 for a possible sexual assault that caused injuries.
Accordance to Japan-U.S. Status of Forces Agreement., the U.S. military handed the suspect over to Japanese authorities after their Dec. 23 indictment. According to the statement, the sexual assault allegations “were treated with extreme care and were swiftly examined” in the hands of U.S. military law enforcement.
Okinawa is the home of the majority of U.S. military bases in Japan. Many residents are unhappy with the bases’ noise, crime, and accidents.
“It cannot be ever forgiven, and we are in deep frustration,” Okinawa Gov. Denny Tamaki said in a statement. “An incident of this kind has been repeated. Indeed, the management and education system for Okinawa’s U.S. military is incredibly insufficient.”
After his indictment, they said that U.S. officials informed the Okinawa prefectural government about the incident.
In December’s final days, the prefectural government claimed that the government had summoned the U.S. and Japanese officials and filed an opposition.
Source: Kyodo
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