An American base employee on Japan's Okinawa was arrested on a charge of suspected drunk-driving on Sunday, a week after tens of thousands of angry residents rallied in protest at crimes linked to the heavy US military presence.

US military personnel are still under curfew after a suspected rape and murder by another employee of a military base.

The 24-year-old US Air Force worker detained on Sunday failed to stop at an intersection and collided with a car whose driver was apparently unhurt, said a local police spokesman.