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U.S. Marine Corps' Lax Weapon Safety on Okinawa

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  14 March 2025

Jon Mitchell
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Extract

A series of incidents — including the theft of an M16 in 2014 and numerous attempts to board civilian aircraft carrying live ammunition last year — has raised concerns that the U.S. military on Okinawa is failing to manage securely its weapons in Japan.

Documents obtained from the Naval Criminal Investigative Service (NCIS) under the Freedom of Information Act reveal how a marine, believed to be a Chief Warrant Officer 3, stole an automatic rifle and bullets, barricaded himself within his home and threatened to kill himself and possibly a fellow service member.

Type
Research Article
Information
Asia-Pacific Journal , Volume 16 , Issue 7 , April 2018 , e2
Copyright
Copyright © The Authors 2018

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References

Notes

1 Michael D. Shear and Michael S. Schmidt, Gunman and 12 Victims Killed in Shooting at D.C. Navy Yard, New York Times, September 16, 2013.

2 Tom Dart and Spencer Ackerman, Fort Hood shooting: four dead and 16 injured at Texas army base, Guardian, April 3, 2014.

3 Office of Suicide Prevention, Suicide Among Veterans and Other Americans, U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, August 3, 2016.

4 Department of Defense, Marine Corps Inventory of Small Arms Was Generally Accurate but Improvements Are Needed for Related Guidance and Training (Report No. D-2011-060), Inspector General, April 22, 2011.

5 Jitsudan shoji yougi de beihei taiho nahakuukou (U.S. service member arrested for possession of live ammunition, Naha airport), Sankei West, March 30, 2017.

6 Marine Corps investigating bullet strikes at on-base construction site on Okinawa, Stars and Stripes, April 18, 2017.