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Osaka: Yamaguchi-gumi member arrested over truck-ramming incident

in Kishiwada City
A truck plowed into an okonomiyaki shop affiliated with the Kobe Yamaguchi-gumi in Kishiwada City last year (Mainichi Broadcasting System)

OSAKA (TR) – Osaka Prefectural Police have arrested an organized crime member over the ramming of a savoury pancake shop affiliated with a rival syndicate in Kishiwada City last year, an incident that is likely related to an ongoing conflict, reports Mainichi Broadcasting System (Mar. 15).

Early on March 25, a male passerby to the restaurant, an okonomiyaki shop located in the Fujiicho area, alerted police after seeing the truck plowed into the front shutter.

In the latest development, police arrested Atsuhiro Sugihara, a 48-year-old member of the Tsukasa Kogyo, an affiliate gang of the Yamaguchi-gumi, on suspicion of causing damage to a structure.

The truck used in the incident had been stolen in Kishiwada. With the shop closed at the time, there were no injuries in the incident, according to police.

The shop is managed by persons connected to the Yamaken-gumi, an affiliate gang of the Kobe Yamaguchi-gumi, police said.

In 2015, the Kobe Yamaguchi-gumi formed as a rival gang to the Yamaguchi-gumi, Japan’s largest criminal syndicate. Following the formation, the gangs have engaged in an ongoing dispute, which has included a number of truck-ramming incidents.

Police are continuing to investigate the circumstances surrounding the incident.