OKINAWA (TR) – An unidentified body was discovered in the charred remains of a yakuza office in Okinawa City early Sunday morning, with police suspecting the victim is the head of the Kyokuryu-kai crime syndicate, reports the Okinawa Times (Apr. 19).
At 4:13 a.m., nearby residents in the Moromizato district dialed emergency services to report a fire at a four-story housing complex. The blaze completely gutted the fourth floor of the reinforced concrete building before firefighters extinguished it about three hours later at 7:10 a.m.
According to the Okinawa Police Station and the local fire department, an unidentifiable body of unknown gender was found in the burned-out ruins. The fire did not spread to the lower three floors, which are regular residential units.
Police revealed that the fourth floor served as the office for the Tominaga-ikka, an affiliate gang of the Kyokuryu-kai yakuza syndicate. The space also functioned as the personal residence of Makoto Itokazu, the septuagenarian chairman of the Kyokuryu-kai, who reportedly lived there alone.
Investigators strongly suspect the deceased is the syndicate boss and are rushing to confirm the body’s identity. Authorities are currently conducting a thorough investigation into the cause of the blaze, keeping the possibility of arson and gang-related foul play in mind.
