Yamaguchi-gumi member linked to Shimada rings in New Year at Kobe shrine

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.” Read more

Out-call sex club just one mystery surrounding death of Kanazawa woman

The operation of a deri heru business, that is, an out-call sex 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. Read more

Sumo world’s connection to mob begins in university

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 Kodo-kai which is an affiliate 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.

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Sumo world’s ties to gangsters, baseball betting have long legacy

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. Read more

Delinquents, dust-ups and drunken dames — Kabukicho drifts downward

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. Read more

DPJ’s nighttime dalliances deemed dubious

Following last month’s revelations in the Mainichi Shimbun that offices of Democratic Party of Japan members spent large sums in adult entertainment clubs, weekly tabloid Flash (Oct. 20) reports on whether the establishments were indeed suitable meeting locations, as was later claimed by the politicians.

To recap, the Mainichi revealed that 5.82 million yen in taxpayers’ money was used, and designated as being for “political purposes,” between 2003 and 2007 by the offices of five senior members of the newly elected DPJ at various kyabakura and hostess bars, where female staff pour drinks and engage in conversation with male customers. The biggest spender was Satsuki Eda, presently the President of the House of Councillors, who paid 2.37 million yen at 11 bars. Read more

Lexicon guide for browsing a Japanese adult site

Riddled with puns, obscure language, and tongue-in-cheek phrases, the typical Japanese adult site can be challenging for even the most astute reader of the language. However, this week The Tokyo Reporter has stumbled upon an article inside an back issue of Flash (Jun. 3, 2008), which provides a quick-and-dirty guide to the adult lexicon.

Chikuchira — short for chikubi chirari (glimpse of nipples). Photos of dressed women that reveal parts of their breasts. Related to panchira (photos revealing panties). Nipple is sometimes playfully written out as chiku-B (district B) or B-chiku (B storage). (Also see Ooguro.)

Esu Efu (SF) — further abbreviated from sefure (sex friend), it means a physical relationship without any particular affection.

Fue — literally flute, a reference to fellatio (which itself is often shortened to fera). Somewhat archaic but still in use are “Ferrari” and shaku (referring to shakuhachi, a Japanese bamboo flute). Read more