TOKYO (TR) – The Sumiyoshi-kai, the largest criminal ring in the Kanto region, is facing unprecedented internal turmoil after its top boss was arrested for allegedly looting 50 million yen from his predecessor’s safe on the exact day he died, reports the site for Weekly Playboy (July 3).
In December of last year, Chiba Prefectural Police arrested Sumiyoshi-kai chairman Shuji Ogawa, who also uses the first name Osamu, and six others on suspicion of theft. The group is accused of raiding the Kashiwa City home of former chairman Isao Seki in May 2022, making off with 50 million yen in cash just hours after Seki passed away.
The incident has sparked outrage within the underworld. Stealing from the grieving family of a former boss is viewed as a massive breach of jingi (the yakuza moral code).
“Ogawa’s camp claims the 50 million yen wasn’t inheritance, but rather collected syndicate dues and tribute money,” an underworld expert explained. “Regardless of the history, opening the safe and taking cash on the very day the former boss died is being heavily condemned. There are now vocal demands within the Sumiyoshi-kai for a change in leadership.”
Authorities are capitalizing
Anonymous letters denouncing Ogawa’s actions had been circulating within the syndicate for nearly two years prior to his arrest, indicating a concentrated faction attempting to drag him down from the top spot.
Amid the chaos, Hideki Kojima, the 75-year-old chairman of the affiliated Keio-kai, has emerged as a leading candidate to take over. Kojima is a highly influential senior executive who controls lucrative turf along the Keio Line, the railway in Tokyo operated by the Keio Corporation. His power is further bolstered by his close ties to Kiyoshi Takayama, a top advisor in the rival Yamaguchi-gumi.
However, authorities are capitalizing on the syndicate’s instability.
In April, the Tokyo Metropolitan Police arrested Kojima on suspicion of violating the Organized Crime Punishment Law for using a fraudulently purchased luxury Toyota Alphard. Crime reporters note that this arrest on minor charges was likely a pretext for police to secure the key figure and probe the syndicate’s internal disorder.
Tokuryu
The police dragnet is also tightening around the Kohei-ikka, another exceptionally powerful Sumiyoshi-kai affiliate that has traditionally driven the syndicate’s growth by recruiting men in their 20s and 30s.
Police established a special task force specifically targeting the Kohei-ikka, aggressively pursuing them over alleged ties to tokuryu syndicates, whose members give and receive orders anonymously via smartphone apps. A recent string of arrests for extortion, confinement, and robbery has led to a significant exodus of gang members this year.
Despite the mounting pressure from both police and rebellious subordinates, a swift resolution to the leadership crisis is unlikely.
An old underworld proverb states: “It costs money in the Inagawa-kai, it costs time in the Sumiyoshi-kai, and it costs lives in the Yamaguchi-gumi.”
Operating primarily as a federation of allied families, the Sumiyoshi-kai has a deep-rooted tradition of consensus-based decision-making. No single person can dictate the group’s direction. Even if the syndicate decides to replace its chairman, avoiding a violent splintering of the group will require a slow, meticulous process.
As police narrow their encirclement, the “time-consuming” syndicate finds itself fighting for survival on multiple fronts.
