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TOKYO: Japanese police on Wednesday visited a US naval base to question a sailor over the fatal stabbing of a taxi driver last month, a military spokeswoman said.
"Police are visiting the base to question the sailor," said the US spokeswoman, Hanako Tomizuka, who declined to give any further information.
Public broadcaster NHK, without citing sources, reported that the 22-year-old sailor had admitted to being involved in the killing last month near the Yokosuka naval base near Tokyo.
Police have declined to comment on the investigation.
The sailor's credit card was reportedly found in the taxi in which the 61-year-old driver was stabbed to death with a kitchen knife on March 19. The US military took the sailor into custody on March 22 on charges of desertion.
The Asahi newspaper, which also did not name its sources, said the sailor is a Nigerian national believed to have stolen the knife used in the attack from a friend's home in Tokyo.
Reports said the taxi driver may have argued with his customer over the fare, which police said was about 17,000 yen (170 US dollars).
The United States has pledged to cooperate with police over the killing, which followed a series of high-profile recent incidents in Japan linked to US servicemen, including the alleged rape of a 14-year-old girl in February.
More than 40,000 American troops are stationed in Japan, which has been officially pacifist since after World War II. - AFP/ac
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