Okinawa court hears closing arguments in sexual assault case against US airman

Reporters covering the trial of a U.S. airman on charges of sexual assault and kidnapping wait outside Naha District Court in Okinawa, Oct. 25, 2024. (Keishi Koja/Stars and Stripes)

NAHA CITY, Okinawa — An American airman would have to serve seven years per Sexually assaulting a minor in Okinawa in December, a Japanese prosecutor argued in court on Friday.

The three-judge panel in Naha, chaired by Judge Tetsuro Sato, has not yet issued a verdict on Airman Brennon Richard Edward Washington, 25, who appeared in court to present closing arguments in his case.

Washington is accused of sexually assaulting the girl, 15 at the time, after picking her up at a Yomitan park and taking her home on December 24.

“I am not guilty,” he said in court in his own defense on Friday. “I didn’t kidnap; “I didn’t rape.”

But the prosecutor opened his summary by saying that the girl provided credible testimony and that the case against Washington is “an undeniable fact.” The prosecutor is identified in court only by his last name, Hisaoka.

The girl, referred to by the court as A, testified on Aug. 23 that she used English, Japanese and hand gestures to tell Washington that she was 15 years old.

A camera in the park recorded “where the girl shows both hands and makes some gestures,” Hisaoka said.

The girl previously testified that Washington at her home kissed her with his tongue, penetrated her vagina with his fingers and tongue and touched her breast under her shirt.

He had to repeat “stop” in English and Japanese several times, he testified.

Washington testified on August 30 that he believed the girl was 18 years old and that she gave him consent.

He said he kissed her, touched her vagina and performed oral sex on her but did not penetrate her with any part of his body.

Washington’s testimony was inconsistent, Hisaoka said.

“Washington said that he had no intention of carrying out sexual actions, but in the camera images you can see that he was touching A’s hair,” the prosecutor argued. “He also explained that he spoke to A because she looked sad, but he did not explain why he took her home.”

The girl also testified that Washington fondled and kissed her in July 2023 outside a convenience store and invited her to his nearby home, but she refused.

She recognized Washington in December when he took her to the same house, she said.

Washington’s defense attorney argued that the girl kept changing her version of events.

“She said during interrogations that she was traumatized by being kissed and touched by a foreigner,” the lawyer said. “But in other interrogations she only said that they hugged her and touched her. Why would he forget to say something that traumatized her?

He also argued that the testimony of the girl’s mother is also unreliable. The two had fought before the December incident without reconciling.

“She didn’t know how to do that and said they raped her to protect themselves,” the lawyer said.

Other adults were present at the park where Washington and the girl met, and she “had the opportunity to escape,” the attorney said.

At the conclusion of the hearing, Washington said he had lost “a lot” of money and time on the case, and that “a lot of bad things happened to him.”

“They have taken everything from me and for this to happen to me is not right because I did not commit this crime,” he stated. “My name is all over the world in a very bad way.”

Washington is scheduled to return to court at 2 pm on December 13, at which time a verdict will be issued.

The charges against Washington and a Marine corporal charged in July in a separate attempted sexual assault case outraged Okinawa government officials. They filed formal complaints with the Japanese government, U.S. military commands, and the U.S. embassy in Tokyo.

In September, another Marine corporal was charged with sexual assault that injured a woman.

The accusations against the service members led US forces to Japan to modify the freedom rules for all branches of services throughout Japan and the Marines in Okinawa to enforce sobriety checkpoints at the doors.

The Okinawa Prefectural Assembly has called for changes to the status of forces agreement governing the U.S. military population in Japan.