Okinawa police arrest US Marine on suspicion of killing Japanese woman at hotel

Okinawa police arrested a U.S. Marine on suspicion of killing a Japanese woman and stealing her belongings at a hotel in the prefectural capital.

Okinawa police arrested a U.S. Marine early on suspicion of killing a Japanese woman and stealing her belongings at a hotel. The Naminoue Crystal Hotel in Naha, Okinawa, is pictured on Oct. 4, 2026. (Keishi Koja/Stars and Stripes) Okinawa police arrested a U.S. Marine early Sunday on suspicion of killing a Japanese woman and stealing her belongings at a hotel in the prefectural capital. Lance Cpl. Devin Jacob Ballard, 20, assigned to Marine Corps Air Station Futenma, is suspected of killing Anna Yagi, 39, of Naha, early Saturday at a hotel in the city’s Wakasa district, an Okinawa Prefectural Police spokesman said by phone Sunday. Police did not identify the hotel but provided a block number.

Based on that and photos published by Okinawa Television, it is Naminoue Crystal Hotel. Police allege Ballard stole the woman’s wallet and another item and killed her sometime between 2:10 a.m. and 4:17 a.m., the spokesman said. Security camera footage showed Yagi entering the hotel with Ballard and Ballard leaving alone sometime later, a second police spokesman said by phone Sunday. The employee entered the room after receiving no response when the pair failed to check out on time. A hotel employee called the Naha Fire Department after finding the woman unconscious, the spokesman said. Police spotted Ballard walking in an Okinawa city nightlife