World

Marine On Trial For Japan Rape

August 1, 2000 / 2:30 PM EDT / AP

A 19-year-old Marine is on trial this week before a U.S. military court for allegedly raping a woman at a base on Okinawa, a military official said Tuesday.

Pfc. Derrick L. Oliver is accused of raping a Japanese woman March 4 at his home near Futenma Marine Corps Air Station, where he worked as a mechanic, said Capt. Joseph M. Plenzler, a Marine Corps spokesman.

Oliver, from Farmville, Va., pleaded innocent. He faces a maximum penalty of life in prison if convicted, Plenzler said.

Okinawa, located 480 miles southwest of Tokyo, is home to 26,000 of the 47,000 U.S. forces stationed in Japan.

On July 3, another 19-year-old Marine was charged with breaking into an apartment in Okinawa City and fondling a 14-year-old junior high school student as she slept.

The incident sparked protests on the island, prompting President Clinton to express regret for misconduct by U.S. military personnel. Lt. Gen. Earl Hailston, chief of U.S. forces on Okinawa, apologized for the incident and imposed an indefinite midnight curfew on all military personnel there, including a ban on drinking after midnight.

In an effort to reduce growing tensions on the island, the Marines also plan to move the Futenma air station's heliport to a less crowded part of Okinawa.