Cracking down: Sumo scandal just a part of larger anti-yakuza operation

Sumo scandal news may have begun to quiet down with the end of the Nagoya Tournament, but this great article from Gavin Blair at the Christian Science Monitor tells the tale of how the entire shakeup started not as a slap on the hands of wrestlers involved in illegal activities, but as a strike against the omnipresent yakuza by the National Police Agency’s proactive chief Takaharu Ando. After decades of unspoken agreements between police and yakuza that have allowed organized... Read More

Ex-yakuza celeb management office top arrested for attempted fraud

The PR manager of a well-known celeb management office was arrested and a warrant put out for the company representative on July 26 on charges of attempted fraud in connection with a falsified lawsuit for damages against the ex-chairman of major Osaka-based moving company Art Corporation. Shunichi Matsuo, 47, public relations manager of JAC Consultant management office, and ex-Yamaguchi-gumi affiliated Nakano-kai member turned company rep Kazuo Kono, 58, had told Art chairman... Read More

Drugs discovered inside snack packages at Inagawa-kai member's condo

A member of the Inagawa-kai was arrested for possession of stimulants and cannabis after being discovered carrying 19.5 grams of stimulants and 29 grams of marijuana on his person July 7. A search of the man’s Fujisawa condo revealed 60 grams of stimulants (estimated to be worth 5.4 million yen), 775 grams of dried cannabis (estimated to be worth 4.7 million yen), and 1,500 syringes. Some of the stimulants in the condo were discovered in canistesr of potato chips that had... Read More

Tokyo Vice hits BBC's Book of the Week

Only weeks after the release of Tokyo Vice: An American Reporter on the Police Beat in Japan in the United Kingdom, we have been honored to have the book chosen to be featured as BBC Radio 4′s Book of the Week. Narrated by Jack Klaff (with a slightly liberal interpretation of a Japanese English accent), Episode 1 is currently up with four more forthcoming later this week. Their website makes it appear that the audio files are only up for seven days, so don’t miss these... Read More

Nichidai board chairman plays matchmaker with Sumo Association and NPSC reps

An article in the July 22 issue of Shukan Bunshun (武蔵川と中井洽疑惑の参院選で「料理停密会」page 146) reports on a suspicious meeting between the chairman of the Japan Sumo Association, Musashigawa, and National Public Safety Commission chairman Hiroshi Nakai, organized by Nihon University board chairman Hidetoshi Tanaka. According to the article, the trio drank and dined at a sophisticated restaurant run by a third-generation geisha in Tokyo’s Kagurazaka... Read More

Kindergarten teacher arrested for taking photos of student

It was announced that a kindergarten teacher has been arrested in Higashi-Murayama city for indecent assault and creating child pornography. The 28-year-old male teacher reportedly molested a fourth-year student in a classroom at the elementary school he worked at last April, then this past January brought the boy home and took photos of him with a digital camera. The man, who is already being prosecuted for the child pornography charges, testified that he committed the crimes... Read More

Reports of Nagoya tournament suffering due to sumo scandal

Amongst much controversy, the Grand Sumo Nagoya Tournament has gone on (mostly) as planned, despite NHK’s refusal to broadcast the event and a boycott by a number of sponsors (but not McDonalds!). It’s far from business as usual, however, as an increased police presence and visible security cameras don’t make sumo fans feel quite as welcome as in previous years. The Mainichi ran an article recently about how the the tournament has been affected, citing an increase... Read More

One Piece voice actor arrested for obscene photos

Voice actor for the popular anime One Piece, Norio Imamura, was arrested July 12 for displaying photos of the lower half of his body on his blog. According to police, Imamura had spent between four and five million yen on tattoos over the past decade, and posted four photos of them that have been deemed obscene on his blog between April 26 and June 17. The actor reportedly testified, “They’re almost finished and I wanted to show them off to everyone.” Along with... Read More

License-less Yamaguchi-gumi tattoo artist arrested

A traditional tattoo artist, or horishi, was arrested July 10 for accepting money for tattoos without the proper medical license under violation of the medical practitioner’s law. The 36-year-old Hyogo-based horishi–who is believed to be a member of the Yamaguchi-gumi–reportedly admits to charges of giving two acquaintances tattoos at his home between May and August 2009 and accepting a total of ¥10,000 for the work. The tattoo artist had previously been indicted... Read More

Dirty diapers: How the sumo scandal is a casualty of the National Police Agency war on the yakuza

Sumo, yakuza, and gambling–What started as a scoop by weekly magazine Shukan Shincho revealing a somewhat imaginable connection between the three has blown up into a huge scandal that has lost several wrestlers their jobs and cost the sport sponsorship, TV slots and, worst of all, face. Foreign media have given the issue more than ample coverage while Twitter has been full of cynical and firey commentary ranging from why a yakuza hand in the sumo world even comes as a surprise... Read More