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Kobe Yamaguchi-gumi #3 boss arrested over illegal car registration

Osamu Teraoka
Osamu Teraoka

HYOGO (TR) – Hyogo Prefectural Police on Thursday announced the arrest a high-ranking boss of a newly formed rival gang to the Kobe-based Yamaguchi-gumi for the fraudulent registration of a vehicle, reports the Mainichi Shimbun (Oct. 22).

Osamu Teraoka, the 66-year-old number-three boss of the Kobe Yamaguchi-gumi, is alleged to have used the name of another person in registering a vehicle at a government transportation bureau in Hyogo in September of 2012.

On Wednesday, investigators raided the headquarters of the Kobe Yamaguchi-gumi, located on Awaji Island, in search of evidence connected to the case.

The Kobe Yamaguchi-gumi formed last month after the split of the Yamaguchi-gumi, which is Japan’s largest crime syndicate. The new gang is composed of at least 13 former Yamaguchi-gumi affiliate gangs, including the Kyoyu-kai, which is also headed by Teraoka.

Since the dissolution, law enforcement has raided the headquarters of a number of the Yamaguchi-gumi’s affiliate organizations and those of the Kobe Yamaguchi-gumi in search of information related to possible conflicts between the two gangs.