NAHA, Okinawa — A Naha District public prosecutor Friday asked for a three-year prison sentence with forced labor for a Kadena airman who pleaded guilty to playing a major role in mugging a cab driver.
Senior Airman Darius A. Brunson, 22, assigned to the 18th Security Forces Squadron on Kadena Air Base, is charged with assaulting the 55-year-old driver March 16 in Okinawa City.
While Brunson and a 19-year-old military dependent waited in a car parked near the crime scene, three other teenage dependents attacked the driver and took about $100 worth of yen and other items.
Prosecutor Yukio Nakajima demanded that Brunson be severely punished, telling the court that the airman lacked law-abiding spirit despite his occupation.
Brunson’s attorney, Satoshi Kawamitsu, argued that his client should get a suspended sentence because Brunson is truly remorseful and there would be no fear of him repeating the same offense.
Charges against three of the four teens were dropped, while one teen was put on probation by Naha Family Court, according to Naha Public Prosecutor’s Office.
Sentencing for Brunson is scheduled for June 23.
