US military extends restrictions for Okinawa personnel after Marine’s indictment

The U.S. military extended the curfew for junior enlisted personnel and further prohibited the consumption of alcohol after a set time for all service members stationed on Okinawa, Japan, following the indictment of a Marine over the suspected murder of a local woman. III Marine Expeditionary Force Commander Lt. Gen. Benjamin T. Watson updated the liberty guidance in a Thursday statement after meeting with representatives from the Okinawa Area Coordinating Committee. The new restrictions will take effect once the current Period of Reflection ends Sunday and will cease Dec. 7. The mandate continues the midnight to 5 a.m. curfew for service members in the grades of E-1 through E-4, but no longer requires those in E-5 and above to be subject to the curfew. All service members are forbidden from purchasing or consuming alcohol outside their primary residence after midnight, per the announcement. “Commanders retain the ability to establish more restrictive liberty policies within their respective commands when conditions warrant and are encouraged to clearly communicate those decisions to the force,” the directive reads. The new order was based on analysis, feedback from joint and interagency leaders and in agreement with U.S. Forces Japan, which previously executed a two-day operational pause for all military personnel to conduct a Period of Training to engage service members with standards, discipline and troops’ responsibilities as members of the Okinawa community. The operational pause came directly after the arrest of Marine Corps Lance Cpl. Devin Jacob Ballard, assigned to the III Marine Expeditionary Force headquartered at Camp Courtney in Okinawa, for the suspected robbery and murder of Anna Yagi, a 39-year-old Naha resident. Japanese prosecutors recently indicted Ballard, alleging that he strangled Yagi with a phone cord at a hotel in the city and then stole her backpack with her wallet and other belongings inside. An investigation of the body found that Yagi died from suffocation. Hotel security footage shows a person with hair and tattoos resembling Ballard’s entering a hotel room with a woman and leaving with items. Directly after the Period of Training, personnel transitioned to the Period of Reflection slated to end Sunday, which set new curfews and enhanced supervision and installations’ gates. Late last month, Kadena Air Base, Okinawa, imposed a junior enlisted alcohol ban and a 10 p.m. to 5 a.m. curfew. Some establishments on the island have been found to serve alcohol to military personnel during curfew hours and allow them to stay past their curfew in violation of the Period of Reflection, causing a temporary Emergency Off-Limits Order for one bar in Okinawa. The Okinawa Area Coordinator will share results of the broader analysis and recommendations from the Period of Reflection to U.S. Forces Japan for consideration in the next couple of weeks, the recent release says. U.S. Ambassador to Japan George Glass shared the order on social media, reinforcing that “shared values of trust, responsible behavior and mutual respect” built the U.S. alliance with Japan. “The measures announced today by III Marine Expeditionary Force in Japan reaffirm our unwavering commitment to these fundamental principles,” Glass wrote. The local murder and subsequent arrest and indictment of Ballard raised concerns among Okinawa residents over the large American troop presence on the island, with officials lodging what Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi described as a “strong protest” against the U.S. while demanding full cooperation with local authorities in the investigation.