Japanese Police Arrest Us Sailor on Murder Charge

Police in Japan today arrested a US sailor suspected of murdering a taxi driver near Tokyo last month.

The arrest came a day after the US military imposed a curfew and a ban on alcohol at the suspect's base in an attempt to defuse growing unrest over crimes committed by its personnel.

According to local media, Olatunbosun Ugbogu, a 22-year-old able seaman, admitted fatally stabbing Masaaki Takahashi in the neck with a kitchen knife near Yokosuka naval base on the night of March 19.

Police launched a manhunt for Ugbogu, who had absconded from his ship the USS Cowpens in early March, after finding his credit card inside Takahashi's taxi.

The US navy handed him over to Japanese police before he was indicted - an unusual move Washington agreed to take in serious cases following the abduction and rape of a 12-year-old girl by three soldiers in 1995.

Bilateral ties were shaken in February this year by a string of crimes involving US troops on the southern island of Okinawa, including the alleged rape of a 14-year-old girl by a marine.

The case, which was dropped after the victim decided not to press charges, prompted US military authorities on the island to impose a 24-hour lock down lasting two weeks.

The US secretary of state, Condoleezza Rice, publicly apologized for the alleged rape during a visit to Tokyo, and last month thousands of residents of Okinawa, which hosts more than half the 50,000 US soldiers in Japan, took to the streets to demand an immediate reduction in troop numbers.

Thomas Schieffer, the US ambassador to Japan, visited officials in Yokosuka today to offer an apology. He expressed "our deep regret and sorrow at the murder that occurred here" and pledged "the full cooperation of the United States in bringing the perpetrator to justice."

Ryoichi Kabaya, the mayor of Yokosuka, noted that Takahashi's murder occurred "despite our repeated requests to strengthen discipline".

"I expect you to tell us immediately what steps you plan to take to prevent these incidents from recurring," he added.

No alcohol will be sold at the Yokosuka base and sailors will not be permitted to drink outside until April 7, when the policy will be reviewed, the US navy said. Almost all off-base travel will be banned between midnight and 6am.

"As members of the Japanese community we are very saddened by this tragic incident," Rear Admiral James Kelly, commander of the US navy in Japan, said in a statement.

"We want to reflect on appropriate responses to incidences of violence. As such, I have initiated a period of heightened sensitivity that will apply to US navy personnel in the Yokosuka area."