Samuel Lewis Stiles Dead: U.S. Sailor Found On Train Platform In Japan

Police in Japan said Monday that a U.S. sailor was found dead at a train station in Nagasaki Prefecture over the weekend.

The sailor, identified as Petty Officer 2nd Class Samuel Lewis Stiles, was found on a train platform at Haiki Station at 5 a.m. Sunday.

Stiles, 25, reportedly had no personal belongings on him and was dressed in civilian clothes. However, CNN reports that the sailor was discovered "surrounded by [several] alcoholic drink cans."

The news agency continues:

The death, which police say they are investigating as either an accident or a crime, comes at a delicate time for the U.S. military in Japan after two U.S. sailors were arrested earlier this month on accusations they raped a local woman.

That case provoked an angry reaction from Japanese officials, and the U.S. military responded by imposing a curfew on its troops in Japan. The curfew restricted military personnel to bases, personal homes or hotels between 11 p.m. and 5 a.m.

It is thought that Stiles may have been out in breach of this curfew the night he died.

According to Chinese news agency Xinhua, Stiles may have died after climbing on top of a "stationary train." The young man may have fallen off the train after getting electrocuted by an overhead power line.

“There will be an investigation obviously,” Commander Naval Forces Japan spokesman Jon Nylander said, according to news website Stars and Stripes.

The website adds that when Stiles was found, his forehead was discovered to have been "bleeding and part of his windbreaker was burnt." There were, however, no signs of violence.

For more, watch this Japanese news report (unsubtitled):