US sailors get jail terms for rape in Okinawa

A court in Japan has passed prison sentences on two US sailors for ‘raping and robbing’ a Japanese woman on the island of Okinawa in 2012.

The Naha District Court in Okinawa said Friday that 23-year-old Skyler Dozierwalker and Christopher Browning, 24, were sentenced to nine and ten years in prison respectively for the rape and robbery of a Japanese woman.

The soldiers said they carried the woman to the parking lot of an apartment building and abused her for nearly an hour. Browning was also charged with stealing 7,000 yen (about 87 dollars) from the victim.

The rape in Okinawa provoked outrage and led to a nationwide curfew on all US military personnel.

Multiple cases of misconduct by American forces have raised anti-US feelings among the Japanese islanders.

Around 47,000 US military personnel are currently stationed in Japan. Some half of the US troops are stationed in Okinawa, where the soldiers have reportedly committed more than 5,700 crimes since Washington returned the island to Japan in 1972.

In 1995, the gang rape of a 12-year-old girl by US servicemen in Okinawa also sparked anti-US protests.