Army sergeant held as new rape accusations surface

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Army sergeant held as new rape accusations surface
By David Allen, Stars and Stripes
Pacific edition, Saturday, February 23, 2008

CAMP FOSTER, Okinawa — The U.S. Army confirmed Thursday that it is holding a sergeant on suspicion of raping a woman Monday on Okinawa, but provided no other details.

“The U.S. Army takes this matter very seriously,” said Dorothy Vick, a spokeswoman for the Army at Torii Station. “Currently, Army authorities are investigating and will continue to fully cooperate with the police.”

The report of the incident comes amid an ongoing uproar over crimes and misconduct among U.S. servicemembers on Okinawa and in Japan, most recently reignited by the alleged Feb. 10 rape of a 14-year-old Okinawa girl by a Marine.

That incident prompted Marine officials to order a two-day training stand-down last week to discuss ethics and professionalism with personnel. Last weekend, however, two more alleged alcohol-fueled crimes involving Marines were reported — a home break-in and drunken driving.

Those incidents prompted Marine Lt. Gen. Richard C. Zilmer to impose indefinite travel restrictions on all military personnel and Defense Department civilians on Okinawa bases, plus Marine Corps Air Station Iwakuni and Camp Fuji on mainland Japan.


Rest of article at: http://www.stripes.com/article.asp?section=104&article=52704