TOKYO (TR) – Tokyo Metropolitan Police have arrested a senior yakuza gang member and three accomplices, including a 17-year-old boy, over an attempt to extort 2 million yen from a man in Kita Ward, reports the Sankei Shimbun (July 27).
Shoichi Hashiguchi, a 40-year-old executive of a gang affiliated with the Inagawa-kai syndicate, was taken into custody along with the teenager, who works as a restaurant employee, and two other men.
Hashiguchi has vehemently denied the allegations upon his arrest on suspicion of attempted extortion. “I didn’t go to the scene on the day of the incident, so I don’t know anything about it,” he told investigators at the Akabane Police Station.
The arrests stem from an incident that took place between December 11 and 12 last year at a restaurant in the Akabane nightlife district. Hashiguchi and his accomplices are accused of cornering a man in his 20s who was affiliated with the establishment.
During the confrontation, the group allegedly threatened the man, demanding, “Hurry up and pay the 2 million.” They further menaced the victim by adding, “Want me to make you cry? Because this is a pain.”
The victim escaped the ordeal without physical injury.
According to police, Hashiguchi seized upon an existing financial dispute between the victim and the restaurant. Investigators believe the yakuza boss orchestrated the shakedown from afar, instructing the teenager and the two other men to confront the victim and demand the cash.
