A Japanese high court on Wednesday upheld a five-year prison sentence for a U.S. airman over the kidnap and sexual assault of a girl under the age of consent in Okinawa Prefecture.
At the Naha branch of the Fukuoka High Court, presiding Judge Takashi Miura rejected the defense's appeal and upheld the Naha District Court's ruling in the trial of 26-year-old Brennon Washington, stationed at the U.S. Air Force's Kadena base in the prefecture.
The defense had argued that the girl's testimony was not credible.
According to the district court verdict, the airman invited the girl into his car on Dec. 24, 2023, at a park in the central region of Okinawa's main island, took her to his home for indecent purposes and touched her lower body, while knowing that she was under 16 years old.
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