TOKYO (TR) – Tokyo Metropolitan Police have arrested a 34-year-old member of the Sumiyoshi-kai yakuza syndicate for allegedly masterminding an illegal drug trafficking ring in the Kanto area, reports TBS News (May 13).
Yuji Washizu, a member of a gang affiliated with the Kohei-ikka faction of the Sumiyoshi-kai, is accused of violating the Stimulants Control Act and the Narcotics Exceptions Act by possessing illicit drugs for commercial purposes.
According to police, Washizu conspired with accomplices to distribute what is believed to be cocaine on the streets of Shinjuku Ward on three occasions between October 2022 and January 2023.
He is also suspected of possessing kakuseizai (methamphetamine) for the purpose of profit at a Shinjuku Ward apartment in January of last year.
Upon his arrest, Washizu denied the allegations, telling investigators, “I don’t know.”
Tokyo Uber
Police believe Washizu served as the ringleader of Tokyo Uber, a wide-reaching drug syndicate with bases spanning across Tokyo and Tochigi Prefecture.
Investigators have classified the ring as a tokuryu — an anonymous criminal group whose members communicate via smartphone apps.
The syndicate allegedly advertised their illicit goods on X to lure customers to the encrypted messaging app Telegram, where they arranged for drugs to be delivered either through hand-to-hand transactions or by mail.
The Tokyo Uber network is believed to have raked in tens of millions of yen in sales over roughly a three-year period. Authorities have already arrested and indicted 11 male members of the group, along with 12 male and female customers.
Tokyo police are continuing its investigation, suspecting that the notorious Kohei-ikka faction acts as the underworld backing for various tokuryu crimes, including drug trafficking, specialized fraud and illicit sex industry scouting.
