OKINAWA (TR) – Okinawa Prefectural Police have revealed that a 39-year-old woman found dead inside a Naha City love hotel was strangled to death, reports Nippon News Network (Oct. 4).
Devin Jacob Ballard, a 20-year-old Private First Class assigned to Marine Corps Air Station Futenma, was arrested over the death of Anna Yagi, whose body was discovered at the hotel on the 3rd.
Following a judicial autopsy conducted on Sunday, police formally announced that Yagi’s cause of death was asphyxiation due to being choked by the neck.
Ballard allegedly fled the hotel immediately after the incident. Investigators tracked him down in Okinawa City the following night and placed him under emergency arrest.
During questioning on suspicion of robbery and murder, the Marine completely denied the allegations, reportedly telling police, “I don’t know anything about it.”
In the wake of the arrest, the victim’s bereaved family released a statement expressing their heartbreak.
“We are grieving the loss of our family member. Her parents, in particular, are utterly devastated by the loss of their daughter,” the statement read. “We ask that you please leave our family in peace.”
