YOKOSUKA, Japan, Jan. 5 (UPI) -- A U.S sailor aboard the USS Kitty Hawk has been taken into custody by U.S. naval authorities in Japan over the suspected murder of a Japanese woman.
The suspect, whose name has been withheld, had admitted his involvement in the death of 56-year-old Yoshie Sato, a resident of Yokosuka, the Mainichi Shimbun reported Thursday.
Security camera footage indicated that several U.S. servicemen may have been involved in the incident that left Sato bleeding and unconscious at the entrance to a building in Yokosuka, the report said.
Japanese investigators alleged that the sailor had blood on his clothes when he entered the U.S. naval base in Yokosuka on the morning of Jan. 3, the same morning Sato was found.
U.S. military officials had reportedly questioned him over his appearance.
Sato appeared to have been attacked while on her way to work. The cause of death was loss of blood due to internal injuries.
Under the Japan-U.S. Status-of-Forces Agreement, Japanese police can request that the sailor be turned over to them. The suspect is likely to be handed over only after charges are filed.
