Kathmandu. From 1989 to May 2026, a total of 4,998 criminal incidents involving US military personnel, civilian employees, and their family members have been registered in Japan. Nearly half of these incidents occurred in Okinawa Prefecture.
According to the Japanese newspaper Akahata, citing data from the National Police Agency, Okinawa alone recorded 2,447 criminal incidents during that period, accounting for 49 percent of the total incidents. Similarly, Kanagawa accounted for 18.3 percent and Tokyo for 8.9 percent of the incidents.
During this period, 266 serious crimes such as murder, robbery, arson, and rape were registered nationwide. Of these, 129 incidents occurred in Okinawa, 67 in Kanagawa, and 34 in Tokyo.
The report states that the local community has had to bear a heavy burden due to the presence of US military bases, and the Japanese and US governments have not taken effective steps to address the problem of related criminal incidents.
Okinawa, which occupies only about 0.6 percent of Japan’s total land area, hosts about 70 percent of the US military’s special-use facilities and structures nationwide. This indicates that the burden of US military presence is disproportionately concentrated in Okinawa.
According to the report, the number of criminal incidents involving US military-affiliated individuals in Okinawa reached 101 in 2025. This is the first time since 2003 that the annual number of incidents has exceeded 100. Similarly, Okinawa’s share of such incidents registered nationwide reached 67.8 percent, the highest since 1989.
Meanwhile, on October 4, Okinawa police arrested a US Marine stationed at the US Marine Corps Air Station Futenma on suspicion of robbery and murder of a local woman. Following the incident, local dissatisfaction with the US military presence in Okinawa has resurfaced.
AloJapan.com