NCIS investigating murder-suicide in Okinawa involving sailor

Japan: Sailor kills woman, self in Okinawa

The Associated Press
By: Yuri Kageyama
April 13, 2019

TOKYO — A U.S. serviceman fatally stabbed a Japanese woman and then killed himself in Okinawa on Saturday, Japan’s Foreign Ministry said, amid growing resentment about the presence of American troops in the southwestern Japanese region.

The apartment where a U.S. servicemen and a Japanese woman were found dead, in Chatan town on Okinawa on Saturday. The sailor fatally stabbed a Japanese woman and then killed himself , according to the Japanese Foreign Ministry, amid growing resentment about the presence of American troops in Japan's southwestern region. (Kyodo News via AP)

U.S. Forces Japan said the Naval Criminal Investigative Service was working with local police to look into the deaths of a U.S. Navy sailor assigned to a Marine unit and an Okinawa resident.

“This is an absolute tragedy and we are fully committed to supporting the investigation,” it said in a statement, adding that more information would be released later.
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Marine Based in Okinawa Drowning Death Second This Month

Marine in Okinawa dies, second apparent drowning this month
Marine Corps Times
By: Jeff Schogol
October 29, 2016

A Marine in Okinawa has died in an apparent drowning incident, marking the second such death this month at Okinawa.

The Marine was assigned to 1st Marine Aircraft Wing with III Marine Expeditionary Force and pronounced dead at 3:40 p.m. Saturday at Medea Point, said 1st Lt. Joseph Butterfield, a spokesman for III MEF.

An investigation into the cause and circumstances of the Marine’s death is ongoing, Butterfield said Saturday in a statement. The Marine’s name is being withheld pending next-of-kin notification.
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Female Marine Found Dead At Camp Hansen Barracks

Marine pronounced dead after being found in Okinawa barracks
Stars and Stripes
Published: May 8, 2015

CAMP FOSTER, Okinawa — The Marine Corps is investigating the death of a Marine who was found unresponsive in her barracks room early Friday at Camp Hansen.

The 9th Engineer Support Battalion Marine, whose name was not released pending next-of-kin notification, was pronounced dead at U.S. Naval Hospital Okinawa around 1:06 a.m., according to a Marine Corps statement.
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Massachusetts Air National Guard Pilot Missing After Crash

UPDATE FROM STARS AND STRIPES

Pilot in F-15 crash was decorated combat vet
Had served as fighter squadron commander at Kadena Air Base, Okinawa

Air Force Lt. Col. Morris Fontenot, the former commander of the 67th Fighter Squadron at Kadena Air Base, Okinawa, looks on at Komatsu Air Base, Japan, on Dec. 7, 2013. Fontenot was killed after the F-15 he was piloting crashed in Virginia on Wednesday, Aug. 27, 2014.
AMBER E. N. JACOBS/U.S. AIR FORCE

By Chris Carroll
Published: August 29, 2014

WASHINGTON — The Massachusetts Air National Guard has identified the decorated combat veteran killed Wednesday when the F-15C fighter he was flying slammed into a remote, heavily forested part of western Virginia.

"On behalf of the family of our fallen pilot and with a sense of profound sadness, I am sad to share that Lt. Col. Morris "Moose" Fontenot Jr., was killed tragically in Wednesday's F-15 crash," said Col. James Keefe, commander of the 104th Fighter Wing, based in Westfield, Mass. "We all continue to keep the Fontenot family in our thoughts and prayers during this very difficult time."

Fontenot served full-time as the unit’s wing inspector general, overseeing the Air Force’s inspection procedures, and as an F-15 instructor pilot with more than 17 years’ experience flying the jets, wing officials said.
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Authorities comb mountains for missing pilot after Guard F-15 crash
Stars and Stripes
By Chris Carroll
Published: August 27, 2014

WASHINGTON — Military and civilian authorities searched a thickly forested, mountainous swath of western Virginia on Wednesday in hopes of finding a missing Massachusetts Air National Guard pilot whose F-15C went down en route to a maintenance depot.

The pilot’s commander said he could not confirm a report that a witness had seen the pilot eject and a parachute open.

“It’s a traumatic event for everyone here, and we’re thinking about the family and keeping our thoughts and prayers with them,” said Col. James Keefe, commander of the 104th Fighter Wing based in Westfield, Mass. “Hopefully we’ll get a good outcome.”
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Dolphins in Afghanistan

Miami Dolphins spend Super Bowl Sunday with troops in Afghanistan
Stars and Stripes
Alex Pena
33 minutes ago

CAMP MARMAL, Afghanistan — Two former players for the Miami Dolphins and five members of the team’s cheerleading squad swapped the sand and sun of South Florida for snow at Camp Marmal in northern Afghanistan to meet with troops on the eve of the Super Bowl.

Troops based at Camp Marmal turned out to meet the former players and cheerleaders and get autographs.

Former Miami Dolphins linebacker Derrick Rodgers, who served in the Air Force before being drafted into the NFL, spent two of his four years in the service in Okinawa.

“Me coming over here is part of my giving back, because I understand that being over here sometimes can be monotonous,” Rodgers told Stars and Stripes. “You’re going through this situation, and not being appreciated is one of the biggest things that goes on in their minds.

“So when I get back and tell everybody what happened, I’m going to tell them there is a lot of individuals out here that care about their country,” Rodgers said.

Rodgers, former NFL fullback Lousaka Polite and the cheerleaders were on a trip organized by Armed Forces Entertainment, a Defense Department agency that provides entertainment to U.S. military overseas.

They signed autographs for the troops, posed for pictures, and had servicemembers sign a Dolphins banner that was to be brought back and hung in the stadium in Miami.
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Marine trying to get home on leave slept at airport

Marine Sleeps At Airport When Bad Weather Prevents Trip Home
WITN News
Jan 30, 2014

Dozens of flights out of our three local airports were cancelled due to the weather this week.

The Pitt Greenville Airport is back to normal operations as of Thursday afternoon, but the Jacksonville airport is still closed.

New Bern's airport was hopeful to get flights out by Thursday night.

WITN spoke to a local marine from Camp Johnson who is really hoping to get home.

Private First Class Derek Stiles has order to Japan on February 6th. Stiles had a flight on Tuesday so he could visit his family and fiance before two years of service in Okinowa.
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Disabled children not good enough for Marines?

Denied accompanied tour, family claims discrimination
Stars and Stripes
By Chris Carroll
Published: October 15, 2013

WASHINGTON — On Aug. 30, Marine Master Sgt. Aarond Roloson boarded a plane at Ronald Reagan National Airport for the first leg of a trip to his next assignment on Okinawa. But instead of leaving the Washington area with his wife and children on what they’d thought would be an overseas adventure — an accompanied three-year tour to Okinawa — the 38-year-old Roloson flew alone.

His wife, Christina, and their five children drove back to a motel in Fredericksburg, Va.

Now the family is fighting to reunite after a Navy medical screening board on Okinawa decided Roloson’s two oldest children, Daniel, 16, and Brenna, 13, are “not suitable for service” on Okinawa because of a recent diagnoses including mild autism and anxiety. Because of the Navy finding, the Marine Corps changed Roloson’s orders to an unaccompanied tour.

The decision is potentially life-altering for the family, which will be separated as it deals with the implications of Daniel’s and Brenna’s diagnoses, along with the military’s reaction to them — one the parents say amounts to discrimination.
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Veteran gets diploma six decades later

Veteran gets diploma six decades later
WISH TV
Published : Sunday, 09 Jun 2013

FORT WAYNE, Ind. (WANE) - LeRoy Blessing is not your typical graduate.

Sixty-two years ago, Blessing dropped out of high school his junior year to join the Marines. For 20 years, he served our country. He served in the Korean War, Okinawa and had two tours in Vietnam.

He retired from the Marine Corps as a Captain, our sister station WANE reports.

Although he is a decorated war veteran, he always felt something was missing. He learned about a bill passed by an Indiana lawmaker that allows veterans who dropped out of school to join the military to get their high school diploma, so he knew it was an opportunity he couldn't let pass.

"I better go ahead and get it because I don't know how long I'm going to be here," Blessing said.

Blessing got his diploma tonight along with more than 400 other Carroll High School graduates.
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Veteran gets diploma six decades later

Marine who died on Okinawa identified

Marine who died on Okinawa identified
Stars and Stripes
Published: December 6, 2012

CAMP FOSTER, Okinawa — The Marine Corps on Thursday released the identity of an Okinawa Marine who died earlier this week after emergency responders were called to his off-base home.

Staff Sgt. Donald B. Landgraf, 35, of St. Charles, Ill., was pronounced dead at the Camp Lester Navy hospital Tuesday.
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WWII Veteran finally accepts medals from Battle of Okinawa

67 years later, veteran finally accepts medals from Battle of Okinawa
Oct. 13, 2012
Philadelphia Inquirer
By Mari A. Schaefer
Inquirer Staff Writer

Sixty-seven years did not blot out the searing memories of the Battle of Okinawa for World War II infantryman Montraville "Monte" Lybrand.

He held his hand to his quivering chin, bowed his head, and whispered, "You always remember the ones that didn't make it." With blue eyes welling up, he waited for composure. "I was with them for such a short period of time," he finally managed to say. "We were buddies."

Over the decades, Lybrand, of Drexel Hill, rarely spoke of his experience in one of the war's bloodiest episodes, dispensing his fighting past only in "little bits and pieces," said his oldest daughter, Kathleen Murtaugh.

Yet, suddenly at 86, he decided he wanted the medals that were due him from the 82-day assault that took the lives of 12,500 comrades.

On Friday, at a ceremony in the Delaware County office of U.S. Rep. Patrick Meehan (R., Pa.), Lybrand stood proud as his blue blazer was festooned with hardware: the Purple Heart, the Good Conduct Medal, the Asiatic Pacific Theater Medal, the Army of Occupation Medal, the World War II Victory Medal, the Combat Infantryman Badge, the Rifle Marksmanship Badge, the Honorable Service Lapel Button - and, in a surprise to Lybrand, the Bronze Star, the fourth-highest honor.
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Marine's attempted suicide prompted punishment instead of help

UPDATE Marine on trial for suicide attempt Posted Tuesday, Nov. 27, 2012 on Star-Telegram

Marine's suicide attempt was a cry for help. Was it also a crime?
By TRAVIS J. TRITTEN
Stars and Stripes
Published: September 12, 2012

CAMP FOSTER, Okinawa — Is the Marine Corps out of line for jailing and punishing a private for attempting suicide?

That’s the question awaiting the military’s highest appeals court.

Pvt. Lazzaric Caldwell’s failed suicide in 2010 at an Okinawa base led to a court-martial conviction, 180-day prison sentence and a bad-conduct discharge. The only such case prosecuted by the Marines in at least two years has provided a rare public view of the tension between the military’s desire to punish self-injury and its recent outreach efforts amid a suicide epidemic across the services.

The U.S. Navy-Marine Corps Court of Criminal Appeals in Washington, D.C., backed the conviction in December, saying it believes the military’s right to try such cases should be unfettered. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Armed Forces has agreed to hear Caldwell’s appeal, with oral arguments scheduled for Nov. 27. Its decision could provide legal grounds for future prosecutions or lead to an appeal to the U.S Supreme Court by either side.

The appeals court said it will rule specifically on whether the military can punish a suicide attempt as self-injury under an article of the Uniform Code of Military Justice that refers to good order and discipline.

Caldwell was not available for an interview. In February, he told The Associated Press he was surprised to learn he would be charged.

“I thought it was unfair and I thought it was just kind of morally wrong to punish somebody for something of that nature,” Caldwell said.
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Army investigating body building drug connection to soldiers' deaths

Army Probes Health Supplement's Link to Deaths

December 16, 2011
Stars and Stripes
by Travis J. Tritten

CAMP FOSTER, Okinawa – The U.S. Army said it is investigating whether a popular bodybuilding and weight-loss supplement might be to blame for two soldier deaths and serious health problems in others, including liver and kidney damage.

The two soldiers suffered heart attacks and died earlier this year during physical training with their units at an Army base in the southwestern United States and the dietary supplement DMAA was discovered in their bodies following toxicology tests, according to Army spokeswoman Maria Tolleson.

The Army launched an ongoing safety review after recording a number of other serious health effects among known and potential users of products containing DMAA including “kidney and liver failure, seizures, loss of consciousness, heat injury and muscle breakdown during exertion, and rapid heartbeat,” Tolleson said in a written response to Stars and Stripes this week.

Bodybuilding and weight-loss pills and powders containing DMAA, which is widely marketed by the fitness supplement industry as geranium extract and 1,3 dimethylamylamine, were pulled from shelves at Army and Air Force Exchange Service and Navy Exchange stores around the world following a military product recall Dec. 3.

Retailer GNC and at least one maker of the products said Friday that products containing DMAA have been tested as safe and have not been linked to any other health problems.

“There is no scientific or medical evidence that demonstrates any causal link between DMAA and any adverse medical condition, let alone a death,” according to GNC spokesman Greg Miller.
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Marines based in Okinawa forced to listen to insurance sales pitch

Report: Private firms still selling unsuitable insurance to troops
By Charley Keyes, CNN Senior National Security Producer
August 23, 2011 7:58 p.m. EDT

STORY HIGHLIGHTS
Pentagon says junior enlisted members not protected
Officers don't enforce existing rules, report says
Troops solicited to buy policies they don't need, can't afford

Washington (CNN) -- Five years after a law to protect U.S. military personnel from salespeople selling life insurance, a new Pentagon report finds problems continue.

The Inspector General found that insurance agents used prohibited sales practices both on and off U.S. military bases to persuade personnel to buy insurance they may not need or be able to afford.

And the report also found that military personnel failed to enforce existing policies that limits solicitation of military personnel. In addition, the report said, companies used misleading marketing techniques and misused the Defense Department myPAY internal payment system.

"Although DoD (Department of Defense) has taken some corrective actions and some States have initiated actions against insurance agents and companies, junior enlisted Service members continue to purchase high-cost life insurance products considered unsuitable for most military personnel and which may threaten their financial stability," the Pentagon Inspector General wrote in a report released Tuesday.

All military personnel are automatically enrolled in a life insurance policy administered by the Veterans Administration from their first day of training or active duty.

The report found that as an example of improper actions by private insurance agents, Marines based in Okinawa were introduced to an insurance agent during a financial class taught by a Defense Department civilian and were later told by a noncommissioned officer to attend a sales solicitation event. Another Marine told Inspector General investigators he was not allowed to leave formation before agreeing to provide contact information to insurance salesmen.
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Three U.S. servicemembers died in recent days on Okinawa

Military investigates three separate U.S. servicemember deaths on Okinawa
By David Allen
Stars and Stripes
Published: September 13, 2010
CAMP FOSTER, Okinawa — Three U.S. servicemembers died in recent days on Okinawa in separate incidents in which the military provided few details.

A major assigned to the 909th Air Refueling Squadron at Kadena Air Base died at approximately 9 a.m. Sunday, according to the 18th Wing public affairs.

Maj. Mike Kallai, a KC-135 Stratotanker pilot, was found unconscious in his off-base home and rushed to Camp Lester Naval Hospital for treatment. He was pronounced dead shortly after arrival, according to a statement released Monday afternoon.
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US servicemember deaths on Okinawa

also in Okinawa
Marine Base's Critics Win Vote in Okinawa Wall Street Journal

Behavior training ordered for servicemembers on Okinawa

Behavior training ordered for servicemembers on Okinawa
Mandate comes after string of off-base incidents
By David Allen, Stars and Stripes
Pacific edition, Thursday, March 25, 2010
CAMP FOSTER, Okinawa — A recent rash of off-base incidents involving servicemembers on Okinawa has prompted commanders to call for mandatory behavioral training.

Marine Lt. Gen. Terry G. Robling, the senior commander on Okinawa, has ordered all servicemembers and civilian employees to take part in unit training “to review what is expected of them (in order) to ensure good order and discipline,” according to a news release issued Tuesday afternoon.

On Okinawa, even minor incidents involving U.S. troops are used as ammunition for opponents of the U.S. bases on the island. The latest incidents come at a time when the prefectural government and anti-base factions are stepping up their campaign to scrap a plan to build a new Marine air facility on Okinawa.

Robling met with senior commanders from all services Saturday to discuss measures “to reduce incidents and accidents to the greatest extent possible,” according to the release.
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http://www.stripes.com/article.asp?section=104&article=68864

Trio of Marines receive Bronze Star

Trio of Marines receive Bronze Star
By Cindy Fisher, Stars and Stripes
Pacific edition, Monday, December 1, 2008
CAMP SCHWAB, Okinawa — Although Iraq is much quieter these days for U.S. troops, danger still lurks.

Just ask some of the Marines of 3rd Reconnaissance Battalion. The Okinawa-based troops returned here last month after a seven-month deployment in Anbar province, where they patrolled booby-trapped areas and engaged in firefights.

Last week, their battalion commander pinned combat decorations on the chests of three of those Marines.

The commanding officer of 3rd Recon — Lt. Col. Oliver B. Spencer — presented the Bronze Star Medal with V device for valor to Sgt. Scott D. Redmund, Capt. Luke Lazzo and Sgt. George J. Callum for their actions in combat.

"You just have to say, ‘My God, I am standing amongst heroes,’ " said Spencer, who did not deploy with the recon Marines and just took command of the battalion Nov. 19.

Spencer’s heroes told the stories behind the medals.
go here to read their stories
http://www.stripes.com/article.asp?section=104&article=59150

Officials: Help limited for domestic violence victims overseas

Officials: Help limited for domestic violence victims overseas
By Natasha Lee, Stars and Stripes
Pacific edition, Thursday, November 13, 2008



Despite a decrease in domestic violence at military bases, some officials say limited resources overseas continue to make tackling abuse difficult.

At Kadena Air Base on Okinawa, referrals to its Family Advocacy Program regarding child and spousal abuse have declined from 259 cases reported in fiscal year 2006 to 197 in fiscal 2008.

But Kadena’s lack of the kinds of services available to military and civilians stateside — namely domestic violence shelters and child protective services — presents challenges for victims and advocates.

"It’s significant. It’s the most intense place in all of the nine PACAF (U.S. Pacific Air Forces) locations," said Air Force Capt. Sundonia Wonnum, chief of Kadena’s Family Advocacy Program, which provides resources and services for Air Force and Army victims.

The only domestic violence shelter that did service military families on Okinawa closed last November due to lack of funding, Wonnum said.

And a language barrier makes it difficult for victims to seek help outside military bases, she said.

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FOCUS goes to Camp Foster Okinawa

Military FOCUSes on family emotional aid
By Natasha Lee, Stars and Stripes
Pacific edition, Friday, September 5, 2008



CAMP FOSTER, Okinawa — A new support program is helping Marine and Navy families deal with the emotional effects of long-term deployments and the strains of war.

FOCUS, or Families OverComing Under Stress, provides coping and problem-solving skills to help servicemembers and their families during and after deployments.

For military families, confronting and expressing emotion can be difficult, said Lisa LaPorte, a FOCUS trainer.

Children can feel uncomfortable sharing feelings of sadness or anger out of fear they may upset or offend a parent, she said, and servicemembers may be apprehensive about seeking help because they don’t want to be seen as weak in a system that promotes strength and force.

"Everybody’s protecting each other," LaPorte said. "You don’t want to say anything because you might make Mom cry or you have a teen who is against the war but has a parent who is a servicemember and has been deployed in Iraq or Afghanistan."

LaPorte said FOCUS teaches effective communications.

"We give everyone a voice to express themselves and to be able to hear everyone’s opinions," she said.

During a series of sessions, families receive "resiliency training," in which they identify challenges and develop ways to address them.

Participation in the program is voluntary and confidential, LaPorte said.

Unlike therapy or counseling that provide ongoing treatment, FOCUS aims to equip families with resources to handle stresses before they become overwhelming.

"It’s prevention. We want to reach families before they need counseling and advocacy, or mental health [services]," said Fallon Sims, resiliency training coordinator.

Families will typically meet with a FOCUS team for eight sessions, which include separate meetings for children and parents, Sims said. Sessions can be expanded if needed.
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http://www.stripes.com/article.asp?section=104&article=57192

Cpl. Christian S. Cotner non-combat death under investigation

Nonhostile death of Okinawa-based Marine in Iraq being investigated
Corporal with III MEF died in Anbar province By David Allen, Stars and StripesPacific edition, Thursday, June 5, 2008
CAMP FOSTER, Okinawa — An investigation was continuing Tuesday into the death of an Okinawa-based Marine in Iraq on Friday.
Cpl. Christian S. Cotner, 20, assigned to Marine Wing Support Squadron 172, Marine Wing Support Group 17, 1st Marine Aircraft Wing, III Marine Expeditionary Force, was killed in what Department of Defense officials are calling a "nonhostile incident" in the Anbar province of Iraq, where his unit is deployed.
No details regarding the incident have been released.
His death pushed the number of Americans killed in Iraq in May to 19, the lowest number since 20 troops died in February 2004, according to an Associated Press tally based on military reports.
Cotner, a field radio operator, entered the Marine Corps on Aug. 7, 2006, according to a Marine Corps news release from Okinawa. He arrived on Okinawa April 12, 2007, and was promoted to the rank of corporal on April 1.
His personal awards and decorations included the National Defense Service Medal, Global War on Terrorism Medal, Sea Service Deployment Ribbon and Meritorious Mast.
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http://www.stripes.com/article.asp?section=104&article=55309

Former Airman learns son died a year ago

Former airman shocked to learn his son has been dead for a year
By David Allen, Stars and Stripes
European edition, Wednesday, April 16, 2008



URUMA, Okinawa — It’s been a year since 8-year-old Jordan Peterson died from injuries allegedly inflicted in a beating by his stepfather at his off-base home in Uruma.

But it was just last week that Jordan’s real dad found out his son was gone.

“You can’t believe my shock,” Damion Peterson said Monday in a telephone interview from his San Antonio home. “All in one day a friend said he had information that the military on Okinawa had investigated the possibility that Jordan was abused. And then I called my ex-mother-in-law to find out about the abuse and she tells me he’s been dead for a year.”

That was April 7. A Google search of his son’s name then brought home the horrible truth.

Peterson’s sister found a series of stories in Stars and Stripes that detailed Jordan’s death and the arrest — and later release — of the boy’s stepfather, Roberto Deleon, by Japanese police who alleged the child was beaten to death.

“My brother was devastated,” Marlo Saenz said. “The divorce was horrible, but he had always hoped to see Jordan again. He was the sweetest little boy.”

Peterson, 32-year-old former airman now living in Texas, said he had been estranged from his ex-wife for four years and she refused to let him have contact with his son during most of that time. He said she left him while they were living in Germany and he lost the ability to have Jordan for the summer visitations spelled out in their divorce decree.
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http://www.stripes.com/article.asp?section=104&article=54088