US Marine Indicted for Murder and Robbery of Woman in Okinawa

U.S. Marine officials are confirming an overseas investigation and indictment against one of their own, Marine Lance Corporal Devin J. Ballard, charged in Japan for the robbery and death of an Okinawan woman.

A statement released to Military.com confirmed the case late Wednesday.

“III Marine Expeditionary Force is aware that Lance Corporal Devin J. Ballard has been indicted by Japanese authorities in connection with the robbery and death of an Okinawan woman in Naha,” the statement reads. “We recognize the seriousness of the charges and will continue to cooperate fully with Japanese authorities in their ongoing investigation as the legal process moves forward. There are no further updates available at this time.”

The 20-year-old Ballard is suspected of ​killing Anna Yagi, 39, in a hotel in Naha, ⁠the prefectural capital of Okinawa, on October 3. Ballard has reportedly denied ​the allegations.

Japanese Public broadcaster NHK reported that prosecutors indicted Ballard, claiming he allegedly strangled the victim with a telephone cord and stole a backpack containing a wallet.

Military.com has sent a request for information to the Naha Prosecutors’ Office, but has not yet received a response.

Local news outlets have published pictures of Ballard believed to be from security camera footage, allegedly showing him drinking just before the incident, though the pictures have not been independently verified.

The case has triggered a series of reactions, including protests in Okinawa and in the nation’s ‌capital, ⁠Tokyo. There’s also been public condemnation from Japanese political leaders, namely Japan’s premier, who slammed the alleged killing as a “heinous crime.”

Japanese Foreign Minister Toshimitsu Motegi has said that officials were reviewing the off-base code of conduct for U.S. troops in Japan, as a result of the case.

“We plan to hold discussions including whether the existing rules are effectively functioning,” Motegi said in a statement, adding that “matters such as patrols and curfew management” would be under review in talks with the United States.

The existing U.S. policy was updated in 2024 following a string of sexual assaults by American military personnel in Okinawa. It includes a ban on members of the U.S. military drinking in public between 1 a.m. and 5 a.m. or going to bars during those hours.

Ballard’s exact whereabouts have not been released, but records show he is stationed at Futenma Air Station in Okinawa.

Crimes including rapes, assaults, hit-and-runs and drunk driving by U.S. military personnel have long triggered protests on the southern Japanese island near Taiwan ​and China. For years, Okinawans have urged other regions in the country to share the burden of hosting U.S. troops.

In 2025, a Japanese court sentenced a U.S. Marine accused of choking and attempting to rape a woman in her 20s, to seven years in prison. In 2017, a former U.S. Marine and civilian military base worker was sentenced to life in prison for the rape and murder of a woman in Okinawa. The same year, an intoxicated U.S. Marine crashed his vehicle into a mini-truck, killing its 61-year-old local driver.

In Japan, once a suspect is formally indicted, the conviction rate stands at more than 99%.