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Kobe Yamaguchi-gumi members nabbed for coercing acquaintance to cut off finger

In the ritual known as yabitsume, a gangster trims off the end of one of his fingers as a means of atonement
In the ritual known as yubitsume, a gangster trims off the end of one of his fingers as a means of atonement (The Tokyo Reporter)

HYOGO (TR) – Kanagawa Prefectural Police on Monday raided an office of a criminal syndicate in Kobe following the arrest of two members for allegedly coercing a male acquaintance to remove one of his fingers, reports the Sankei Shimbun (Nov. 7).

At around 1:00 p.m., officers entered the office of the Kobe Yamaguchi-gumi, located in Chuo Ward, in search of evidence connected to the alleged coercion by two upper-level members for the acquaintance to remove the end of his left pinkie finger with a knife in a parking lot in the Nogawa area of Kawasaki City’s Miyamae Ward at 6:45 p.m. on August 9.

In the world of organized crime, the finger-cutting custom — known as yubitsume — is a deep-rooted act to show responsibility for a transgression. In this case, one of the suspects told the victim, “You must take clear responsibility for your mismanagement.”

The office searched on Monday is believed to be the new headquarters of the Kobe Yamaguchi-gumi following the gang’s departure from a building in Awaji City last month due to a complaint lodged by local residents.