Asia After Hours

Just after 12:10 a.m. on January 1, five upper-level members of the Yamaguchi-gumi criminal syndicate, including top boss Shinobu Tsukasa, 69, arrived at Gokoku Shrine, located near the gang’s headquarters in Hyogo Prefecture, for their first visit of the year, a practice known as hatsumode.

One member of the group stood out from the rest, reports Flash Jan. 17-24. Chairman Hirofumi Hashimoto, 64, had been out of the spotlight since apparently being connected to Shinsuke Shimada, the popular entertainer who over the summer abruptly announced his retirement from the entertainment business, citing an exchange of e-mails with an upper member of the Yamaguchi-gumi as the reason.

“The chairman never had an intention to hide,” says a writer covering topics related to boryokudan, or organized crime syndicates. “He actually took part in the mochitsuki (rice-cake making) event last December. The media simply didn’t know where he was.”

A few minutes after the first group was gone, two more managers arrived, and they were followed by an additional 11 members. During a typical year, about 20 people will come to shrine on New Year’s Day to perform various ceremonial activities. This year is the first year for Tsukasa to pay a New Year’s visit since being released from jail in April.

“I was surprised at the fact that quite a lot of executive members visited (Gokoku Shrine),” explains the boryokudan writer, “though I had imagined that only one or two would come as a ‘personal’ visit this year.

The top boss, Tsukasa, and the other members arrived at the shrine and joined the line with general visitors, a consequence of anti-gang legislation passed in October. The group announced in November that it would not make an official visit this year.

According to Flash, Hyogo prefectural police concluded that the practice of prayers in small groups to be acceptable.

“Some people took Tsukasa’s photos with mobile phone or looked into his face when they noticed it was the boss of Yamaguchu-gumi,” continues the writer. “Tsukasa didn’t seem to find it annoying and even gave them a smile.”

In past years, the members would go into the hall of worship from another entrance and never have contact with general people.

“However, this year they offered prayers among the regular visitors without going into the hall,” the journalist continues. “That was an extraordinary scene.” (A.T.)

Source: “Tsukasa kumicho & wakagashira hosa Hashimoto kaicho bohaijore de ireizukushi kutsujoku hatsumode,” Flash (Jan. 17-24, page 15)

Note: Brief extracts from Japanese vernacular media in the public domain that appear here were translated and summarized under the principle of “fair use.” Every effort has been made to ensure accuracy of the translations. However, we are not responsible for the veracity of their contents. The activities of individuals described herein should not be construed as “typical” behavior of Japanese people nor reflect the intention to portray the country in a negative manner. Our sole aim is to provide examples of various types of reading matter enjoyed by Japanese.

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Just after 12:10 a.m. on January 1, five upper-level members of the Yamaguchi-gumi criminal syndicate, including top boss Shinobu Tsukasa, 69, arrived at Gokoku Shrine, located near the gang’s headquarters in Kobe, Hyogo Prefecture, for their first visit of the year, a practice known as hatsumode.

In addition to complications facing the gang regarding associating with the general public following the passage of legislation in October, Flash (Jan. 17-24) reports that the visit was also interesting due to the presence of one member in particular.

Chairman Hirofumi Hashimoto, 64, had been out of the spotlight since apparently being connected to Shinsuke Shimada, the popular entertainer who over the summer abruptly announced his retirement from the entertainment business. He cited an exchange of e-mails with an upper member of the Yamaguchi-gumi, presumably Hashimoto, as the reason.

“The chairman never had an intention to hide,” says a writer covering topics related to boryokudan, or organized crime syndicates. “He actually took part in the mochitsuki (rice-cake making) event last December. The media simply didn’t know where he was.”

A few minutes after the first group was gone, two more managers arrived, and they were followed by an additional 11 members. During a typical year, about 20 members will come to shrine on New Year’s Day to perform various ceremonial activities. This year is the first year for Tsukasa to pay a New Year’s visit since being released from jail in April.

“I was surprised at the fact that quite a lot of executive members visited (Gokoku Shrine),” explains the boryokudan writer, “though I had imagined that only one or two would come as a ‘personal’ visit this year.

The top boss, Tsukasa, and the other members arrived at the shrine and joined the line with general visitors, a consequence of anti-gang legislation that restricts the fostering of organized-crime activities. The group announced in November that it would not make an official visit this year.

According to Flash, Hyogo prefectural police concluded that the prayers carried out in small groups would be acceptable.

“Some people took Tsukasa’s photos with mobile phone or looked into his face when they noticed it was the boss of Yamaguchu-gumi,” continues the writer. “Tsukasa didn’t seem to find it annoying and even gave them a smile.”

In past years, the members would go into the hall of worship from another entrance and never have contact with general people.

“However, this year they offered prayers among the regular visitors without going into the hall,” the journalist continues. “That was an extraordinary scene.” (A.T.)

Source: “Tsukasa kumicho & wakagashira hosa Hashimoto kaicho bohaijore de ireizukushi kutsujoku hatsumode,” Flash (Jan. 17-24, page 15)

Note: Brief extracts from Japanese vernacular media in the public domain that appear here were translated and summarized under the principle of “fair use.” Every effort has been made to ensure accuracy of the translations. However, we are not responsible for the veracity of their contents. The activities of individuals described herein should not be construed as “typical” behavior of Japanese people nor reflect the intention to portray the country in a negative manner. Our sole aim is to provide examples of various types of reading matter enjoyed by Japanese.

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The operation of a deri heru business, that is, an out-call service, can be a dangerous venture — so much so, believes Flash (Mar. 15), that it was likely one factor in the mysterious death of a woman in Ishikawa Prefecture.

Haruna Fukuda, 27, a housewife from Kanazawa City, went missing from her home on February 6. A former cameraman employed on commission at public broadcaster NHK, Yasutaka Wako, 35, was questioned 11 days later by investigators from the Ishikawa prefectural police. He slashed his head at his parent’s home in a suicide attempt the next day.

On February 24, Fukuda’s body was found buried on the beach in Uchidamachi, about 12 kilometers from where her car was previously found abandoned. Investigators reported that Fukuda had been stabbed in the neck and been dead for between two and three weeks. Wako was subsequently arrested for abandoning her body.

Fukuda had a three-year-old child with her husband, whom she married four years ago. They also bought a house last year. Her father had managed an electrical shop in the town of Shikamachi, but he closed it down to start a “staffing services agency.”

That agency is one of the approximately 300 deri heru clubs in Kanazawa. (The article includes a graphic from the Web site of this club, which opened three years ago.) Fukuda helped her father by working as a receptionist and in keeping the books.

The headquarters of the club is in Toyama Prefecture — for its lax regulations — and sent ladies to Kanazawa and Toyama in building up its client base. “It was known for good-looking girls and high-quality services,” says an individual affiliated with a fuzoku magazine. But the shop has been unreachable since the day Fukuda’s body was discovered.

The magazine notes that Waka was in substantial debt to Fukuda (3 million yen) and her family (5 million yen). The article postulates that the source of the funds was the out-call business. Fukuda told her parents on the day she disappeared that she was meeting Waka to collect the money.

The cameraman was working on a contract basis via a production company. “He married three years ago and has a child less than one year old,” says a local mass-media person. “He was about to buy a house, so everything seemed going well for him, including his work covering the prefectural government. His clothes did stand out and he was popular among the ladies, but it’s shocking to know that he is a suspect.”

He turned to freelance after March of last year. “He wanted to start up a company, and thus needed some capital,” says an acquaintance of Wako. “But he became contracted with another production company, which allowed him to keep his post with NHK. So he didn’t need to start up that company.”

Fukuda and Wako seemed to have a relationship that went beyond money-lending, one that included attending live reggae shows, reveals the same acquaintance. “They were close for the last few years,” the source says. “He used to say that the basics of having a love affair included the ability to change emotions between the time you spend with your mistress and your wife; it’s got to be cut and dry, and don’t get involved with one asking you to get a divorce.”

Fukuda had also changed. “She used to bring her child every August to the local festival,” says a resident of Shikamachi. “But last year, she looked more provocative. Everyone was wondering what happened to her.”

Fukuda’s husband seems to be lost. His eyes were not able to focus when Flash spotted him at a convenience store with his child in his arms.

A love affair between newly weds, a lucrative deri heru business, and an investment with no future — too many mysteries, concludes the article. (A.T.)

Source: “Satsugai sareta bijin zuma ninki deliheru-ten keiei no kao,” Flash (Mar. 15, pages 102-103)

Note: Brief extracts from Japanese vernacular media in the public domain that appear here were translated and summarized under the principle of “fair use.” Every effort has been made to ensure accuracy of the translations. However, we are not responsible for the veracity of their contents. The activities of individuals described herein should not be construed as “typical” behavior of Japanese people nor reflect the intention to portray the country in a negative manner. Our sole aim is to provide examples of various types of reading matter enjoyed by Japanese.

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With the Nagoya tournament now underway, Flash (July 27) reports that the ties between sumo and the criminal underworld run much deeper than simply the recent revelations that wrestlers frequently gamble on baseball games and provide seats to matches.

Sources tell the tabloid that relationships are nurtured from the university level. “A senior level member of Kudo-kai, which is a subsidiary of the Yamaguchi-gumi, happens to like and support one particular wrestler,” explains a person from within the sumo world. “That wrestler is a Nihon University alumnus and that has helped to foster the connection with the yakuza.”

Flash notes that Nihon University’s sumo division is known for bringing up wrestlers like (ex-yokozuna) Wajima and Mainoumi. There are five oyakata (stablemasters) and seven wrestlers currently active in sumo.

Wrestler Kiyoseumi, an understudy of stablemaster and ex-wrestler Kise, is also a graduate of Nihon University. In May, Kise was implicated in the scandal in which members of the Kudo-kai were given ring-side seats at last year’s Nagoya tournament. Furthering the mob connection, Flash provides a photo showing Kiyoseumi wearing the character 忍 (shinobi), which is to honor Shinobu Tsukasa (司忍), the sixth and current leader of the Yamaguchi-gumi, on the front of his traditional hakama, or skirt-like pants.

“A yakuza member was a driver for Kise,” explains one sumo supporter. “He was bragging about how much he is connected to the Kudo-kai. He is actually completely under the thumb of that gang, and that’s not an exaggeration.”

Flash explains that the relationship between the yakuza and sumo used to be that of sponsor and benefactor. But the baseball-betting scandal makes it clear that the landscape has changed. It is now about targeting wrestlers and sucking money out of them.

A former wrestler explains why student-born wrestlers are an easy target. “Those from universities don’t need to go through the basics to reach sekitori status,” the former grappler says of wrestlers who reach one of the top two divisions. “Since they have easy access to cash, they tend to become addicted to gambling. They are also well connected horizontally to their peers. That makes it easy for them to share information.”

The article also links Hiroyoshi Murayama, who is the acting managing director of the Japan Sumo Association, to general contractor Suruga Corporation.

“Suruga paid the Yamaguchi-gumi tens of billions of yen through a front company to implement jiage on properties,” says a former senior level manager at Suruga of the practice where threatening actions are taken to evict tenants from properties prior to their sale. “When that issue rose to the surface, Murayama was a managing director of the firm. Further, Suruga became the first company to enter Mongolian property market, and it did so through a partnership with (ex-yokozuna) Asashoryu’s family business.”

Thus far, the association has dismissed wrestler Kotomitsuki and his stablemaster Otake for gambling on baseball. Other wrestlers and senior advisors received punishments. Former wrestler Mitsutomo Furuichi has been arrested for for extorting 3.5 million yen out of Kotomitsuki in an attempt to conceal the operation.

A writer assigned to the Tokyo Metropolitan Police says that the police have searched 30 sumo stables and are working on indictments, with cell phone calls and emails being scrutinized in order to identify the route between former wrestlers and bookmakers. “They will indict all implicated stablemasters and participants after the Nagoya tournament,” the writer says. “The police are doing whatever it takes to eradicate the Kodo-kai.” (K.N.)

Source: “Boryokudan ga anyaku…kore ga kakukai osen “gottsuan sokanzu” da!” Flash (July 27, page 10)

Note: Brief extracts from Japanese vernacular media in the public domain that appear here were translated and summarized under the principle of “fair use.” Every effort has been made to ensure accuracy of the translations. However, we are not responsible for the veracity of their contents. The activities of individuals described herein should not be construed as “typical” behavior of Japanese people nor reflect the intention to portray the country in a negative manner. Our sole aim is to provide examples of various types of reading matter enjoyed by Japanese.

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Ever since weekly tabloid Shukan Shincho reported (in its May 27 issue) that sumo wrestlers frequently gamble on professional baseball games with organized crime members, the Japan Sumo Association has been on the defensive.

On Sunday, the association decided to dismiss 34-year-old wrestler Kotomitsuki and his stablemaster Otake. Other wrestlers and senior advisors received punishments.

Recent revelations that Yamaguchi-gumi crime syndicate members have been supplied with ringside seats for past matches — ostensibly so that fellow gangsters behind bars can catch a glimpse of their compatriots on television — have also soiled the image of the pastime.

Two days after the firings, NHK announced that it would not provide a live broadcast of the upcoming tournament in Nagoya as a result of viewer complaints and sponsorship cancellations over the ongoing scandals.

Yet very little has been explained regarding the intricate connections the grapplers have with mobsters and just how they were gambling on ball games. For that, The Tokyo Reporter turns to a back issue of Flash (June) for a little insight.

“It is not just the rikishi (wrestlers), it is also former grand champions (yokozuna) and sumo officials who are betting on baseball,” a senior member of a Kansai boryokudan, or a yakuza group, explains to the tabloid. “The gamblers stay at inns in the countryside with people affiliated with gang groups and bet on games. Some officials will have their wives there. Relatives of gangsters who are running the gambling ring will also be in attendance. This practice has a long history; it didn’t start just yesterday.”

Revenue collected from baseball betting has historically been one means of income for yakuza groups. “The practice started in the Kansai area in the ’60s,” says a journalist who covers criminal activities. “In the ’80s, it spread to extend nationwide.”

The source says that a single game can see between 10 million yen and 100 million yen change hands.

The betting system is much more complicated than simply picking a winner. In each game, a betting line, or hande, is determined by a bookmaker. This number is based on a variety of factors, including the strength of the teams and the scheduled starting pitchers.

“On the day of the game, the hande of each game is decided by noon and passed to a yakuza messenger who will then distribute them to the gamblers by email,” explains a person affiliated with gang groups. “All bets must then be placed by 2 p.m. that day.”

Two different types of hande are generally applied. Flash provides a photo of a mobile phone screen that displays hande data for the games of May 24. As an example, the favored Yomiuri Giants are given a hande of 1半5 (which is read ichi han go) over the Orix Buffaloes. This means that should the Giants win by a single run, wagers on the Giants are considered losing bets. If the Giants prevail by two, punters will receive a return of 50 percent. If the difference is three or more, then bettors will get even money returned.

In another case, a 1.5 hande is applied to the Hokkaido Nippon Ham Fighters over the Yakult Swallows. This translates as follows: should the Ham Fighters win by a single run, bettors receive a 50 percent return; and even money is reached for a two-run difference or better. The magazine notes that Nippon Ham Figher star right-hander Yu Darvish will often receive a 2.3 hande, meaning a whopping three-run margin would be required for even money.

It should be noted that a 10 percent commission gets taken off the top by the gang group on all wagers.

Interestingly, starters in the Central League are guessed at — a necessity given the league’s tendency of not naming starting hurlers in advance. On May 24, both Yudai Kawai and Kenta Asakura were listed as probables for the Chunichi Dragons against the Rakuten Eagles.

“At least three games must be wagered on,” says the same senior gang member from Kansai. “The money must be paid each Monday. Bets are commonly between 10,000 yen and 1 million yen.”

The same source says that the bets are usually placed by company presidents, members of the sumo world and entertainment figures. Betting on high school baseball also takes place, with gamblers often wagering on games involving their alma maters.

“Since the wrestlers train in the morning, they have time during the day to check the hande numbers,” says the senior boryokudan member quoted previously. “In the afternoon, they’ll have their bouts. So at night they’ll watch the baseball games.”

Sumo and the criminal underworld have a long history, says Flash. “Years ago, sumo wrestlers visited cities and towns in the countryside on special tours,” says the crime journalist. “The people sponsoring the events — which means providing the catering, security and lodging — were local leaders and gang groups.

“Nowadays, the tours don’t happen, but the intricate relationship still exists,” the same journalist continues. “At the sumo stables, for example, it is still up to the yakuza to provide security and transportation, and should there be trouble with a particular wrestler, it’ll be the yakuza who’ll keep it away from the media.”

Sumo watchers feel that the sumo world needs to change its culture if it wants to transcend from mere entertainment to actual sport. “The wrestlers are always receiving everything, always having everything done for them,” explains a person connected to sumo. “If this doesn’t change, they’ll never be able to sever the ties with gangsters and move forward.” (K.N.)

Source: “Kakukai to boryokudan ‘kuroi kankei,’” Flash (June 15, pages 9-11)

Note: Brief extracts from Japanese vernacular media in the public domain that appear here were translated and summarized under the principle of “fair use.” Every effort has been made to ensure accuracy of the translations. However, we are not responsible for the veracity of their contents. The activities of individuals described herein should not be construed as “typical” behavior of Japanese people nor reflect the intention to portray the country in a negative manner. Our sole aim is to provide examples of various types of reading matter enjoyed by Japanese.

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Tokyo’s Kabukicho area as captured at night by the camera of photographer Hajime Kiyohira is seen to be increasingly turning into a Mecca for Japan’s youth, similar to Shibuya, reports Flash (Apr. 20) in a special pull-out section.

The four-page spread features a drunken girl urinating in a street corner; a salaryman takes a punch from an aggressive street tout in front of the infamous Parisienne coffee shop; women unable to walk are sprawled in the arms of their boyfriends as they are dragged away; a police officer chases and eventually corals another unruly tout; and a man with his clothes piled at his feet at the intersection of the Furin Kaikan building announces, “Hadaka de nani ga warui!” (What’s wrong with being naked!), as passersby snap photos with their mobile phones.

The shift towards a younger clientele started with the closing of the Koma Theater at the end of 2008.

“In the streets, there used to be a lot of yakuza,” Kiyohira says of the gangster presence. “But not anymore. It’s just hosts milling around. The area has changed a lot I think.”

The photographer, who has spent the last 15 years shooting Japan’s largest red-light district, recalls an incident 10 years ago in which a group of girls were approached by two men who asked for their phone numbers. “Soon after, a black car pulled up close,” he remembers, “and a few guys jumped out and started beating them. The ladies appeared to be in close with the boryokudan, maybe working in the mizushobai trade.”

Kiyohara says that the Kabukicho of today is frequented by “normal” people. “In the morning, you’ll see young girls sleeping in the streets,” he says, “and guys will haul them off to hotels. This is happening all the time.”

Photos very similar to those inside Flash were featured in Spa! (Sep. 1, 2009) — most notable were shots of naked university students pole-climbing in the plaza fronting the Koma Theater. In that article Kiyohara explained that the well-known clean-up of the area was misleading: “The big clean-up was simply a performance.”

He goes on to tell Spa! that 10 years ago there were only a handful of underground casinos and shops peddling illegal DVDs but now there are around 30. Similarly, Korean and Chinese fuzoku (sex-related) clubs numbered two or three. Today, the total is over 20.

Kiyohara believes that cops will shut one place but it will open in a slightly different form two weeks later. Kabukicho is still littered with girl’s bars, deai cafes, and fuzoku recommendation centers simply because the government’s tax coffers would be lighter if they were all shut.

“Strange, weird young people are out violating various laws,” he says. “In the end, it is not safe.”

A major theme in the Flash pictorial is the numerous shots of women unabashed about flashing some flesh. Low-cut tops, garters and short skirts are all on display. “It’s such a chilly day yet her panties are readily visible,” reads one caption of a man and woman walking away from Hajime’s lens and down a street.

Subculture monthly Jitsuwa Knuckles (May) also uses similarly titillating photos of Kabukicho from Hajime. In closing, it offers this question: The cherry blossoms are blooming and it is getting warmer and warmer — if people continue with such erotic behavior in public, what’s going to happen next? (K.N.)

Source: “Nisen Junen fuyu Kabukicho erosu & baiorensu,” Flash (Apr. 20, special pull-out)

Note: Brief extracts from Japanese vernacular media in the public domain that appear here were translated and summarized under the principle of “fair use.” Every effort has been made to ensure accuracy of the translations. However, we are not responsible for the veracity of their contents. The activities of individuals described herein should not be construed as “typical” behavior of Japanese people nor reflect the intention to portray the country in a negative manner. Our sole aim is to provide examples of various types of reading matter enjoyed by Japanese.

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