滝本 匠 
July 28, 2022 Ryukyu Shimpo
It came to this newpaper's attention on July 27, through an interview with a concerned party, that the Okinawa Prefectural Police had filed charges against three U.S. servicemen on suspicion of fraud for successive incidents which took place in October 2021, in which taxi fare was paid using 100-dollar play notes so as to trick taxi drivers out of the change for the false payment. These three servicemen repeatedly rode in taxis in the area around International Street (Kokusai Dori) in Naha City and paid their taxi drivers with 100-dollar play notes, receiving approximately 9,000 yen in change each time. By June, the Naha District Public Prosecutor's Office had thrown out the charges without prosecuting the servicemen.
According to the concerned party interviewed, two of the three servicemen were members of the Marine Corps in their 20s, and one was a soldier in the Army who was a teen at the time of the incidents. The incidents perpetrated by these three servicemen spanned about ten taxi rides. The servicemen admitted to the gist of the charges. The charges were filed with the Naha District Public Prosecutor's Office against the Army soldier in March, and against the two Marines in June. None of them were prosecuted. The reasoning behind why the Naha District Public Prosecutor's Office threw out the charges is unclear.
According to those hurt by the servicemen's actions, including taxi companies, the 100-dollar play notes were used on October 10 and 11, 2021. Each serviceman rode separately within Naha City, giving instructions such as "go" and "straight" while using the interpretation function on a smartphone, and disembarking from the taxi approximately 100 meters from the boarding location. One serviceman paid 560-yen taxi fare using a 100-dollar play note.
A driver brought one such note to a bank, where it was identified as play money. Multiple companies providing taxi services were hurt by these actions, with the total financial damage done amounting to at least 60,000 yen.
According to a summary by the prefectural police, 22 members of the U.S. military were found to have committed 31 crimes between January and June 2022 (seven more crimes and one fewer person compared to the previous year).
(English translation by T&CT and Erin Jones)
