Yakuza Bosses Given VIP Seats at Sumo Tournament

The biggest news story in Japan this week is the discovery that prominent members of one of Japan’s most infamous yakuza gangs had been allowed to sit in ringside VIP seats that are typically restricted to major sponsors of the Japan Sumo Association:

As the above video clip from ATV news shows, gang leaders were given seats immediately beside the ring, in a spot that made them clearly visible to television cameras filming the tournament. Some experts have said that the yakuza sat there so that fellow gang members watching the sumo matches in prison could see them. It could be a way of showing respect to currently-imprisoned Yamaguchi-gumi boss Kenichi Shinoda.

Those directly responsible for allowing the gang members to get VIP seats have been reprimanded by the JSA:

Stablemaster Kise, 40, whose real name is Naoto Sakamoto, will be demoted two ranks in sumo hierarchy, while Kiyomigata, 64, whose name is Kazuo Wada, will receive a reprimand, the association said over the latest scandal to rock the sumo world following former grand champion Asashoryu’s alleged assaulting a man outside a Tokyo nightclub, which forced him to retire in February.

The Kise stable, which does not have any makuuchi top-division wrestlers, will be disbanded.

Both stable elders have denied any knowledge that the tickets normally allocated to major supporters who have made significant monetary contributions to the JSA were to go to the gangsters.

Six special seats were occupied by members of the group, Kodokai, at a Nagoya Grand Sumo Tournament last July through tickets provided by Kise as well as a male company employee who is presumed to be linked to the group, according to investigations by Aichi police.

This latest scandal comes just days after a tabloid weekly reported that gangsters were trying to blackmail sumo wrestler Kotomitsuki over his alleged involvement in sports gambling.

—

Akihabara News – Gadgetry from Japan (Subscribe)
Dannychoo.com – Your portal to Japan (Subscribe)

Kono

Well your not going to tell them to leave either are you?…yakuza is powerful, they can do whatever they want…which is bad, but there’s really no point in pointing out where they sat, or why they were there, you will never get answers from yakuza…..so as long as they aren’t causing trouble, they shouldn’t be messed with.
Dev

“It could be a way of showing respect to currently-imprisoned Yamaguchi-gumi boss Kenichi Shinoda. ”

Eh? The creator of Gunsmith Cats is in Jail?

helical

That would be Sonoda Kenichi.

Christina

I thought everyone knew Yakuza sat up close? That’s what a few Japanese people have told me.
Stereo

This is much complicated than is reported.
Ordinary people do not know who the members of Yakuza are. The police have a database of Yakuza members but it is not disclosed to the public. The Government strongly discourages private sector to build a database of criminals because such database can hinder normalization of criminals after discharge.
So, a lot of companies unknowingly trade with Yakuza members and then severely criticized by the police. If you run a company, you can understand how hard it is to prevent this kind of scandal.
The real problem is why police do not arrest yakuza. In this sumo case, the police have not arrested the yakuza involved and they never will. If the yakuza was in jail, this case did not happen in the first place.
If someone really wants to avoid this kind of case, he has to be a good friend of a police officer and ask him to secretly see the yakuza database, though keeping a good tie costs a lot and that is why the police is reluctant.

Tony D

“The real problem is why police do not arrest yakuza.”

The police aren’t that willing to give up those cushy pachinko-parlour jobs when they retire, obviously!
leitmotiv

So, a lot of companies unknowingly trade with Yakuza members….

Not surprising. Corporate due diligence of all kinds tends to be kind of a bad joke in Japan.

…and then severely criticized by the police.

What? Just a crabby tongue-lashing from the police? No fines? No judge? Not much of a deterrent, is it?

Stereo

This is much more complicated than is reported.
Ordinary people do not know who the members of Yakuza are. The police have a database of Yakuza members but it is not disclosed to the public. The Government strongly discourages private sector to build a database of criminals because such database can hinder normalization of criminals after discharge.
So, a lot of companies unknowingly trade with Yakuza members and then severely criticized by the police. If you run a company, you can understand how hard it is to prevent this kind of scandal.
The real problem is why police do not arrest yakuza. In this sumo case, the police have not arrested the yakuza involved and they never will. If the yakuza had been in jail, this case would not have happened in the first place.
If someone really wants to avoid this kind of case, he has to be a good friend of a police officer and ask him to secretly see the yakuza database, though keeping a good tie costs a lot and that is why the police is reluctant.
Rob A

At least up close there are unlikely to be open problems with these guys where everyone in the arena can see.

Last thing you want is the ‘Kuza sniping people from the nosebleeds.
Jerry

What song were they playing?
bigtako

if two sumo wrestlers fall from the platform and land on the yakuza boss,
wouldn’t he be crushed to death instantly?

now that sounds like a brilliant plant to give him the “VIP” seating…
VIP, as in Virtually Instant Pulverization
YesZimbabWeCan

Liked the vid, but the 2 yak guys should have Don King hair.
NONEOFMYBEE’SWAX

First come first served. As nationalistic as the Yakuza is who else to be in the front seat of a SUMO match. I mean, if even the politians in Japan aren’t buying up the seats, I don’t see what the fuss is about. OK,OK, yeah their an organized crime gang, but it doesn’t make them any less a customer. Money talks. Bullshit walks.
http://theakiba.com Snow

From what I heard is that the Yakuza isn’t as bad as the Maffia. They actually ‘respect’ others and help during natural disasters. That’s what I got from the media anyway, who knows what their real deal is.. =p

Rune

Might have been true once, just as in the olden days the mob did not deal in drugs and helped out their neighbourhoods, but not any more. The modern Yakuza have traded in honour for greed. If you are interested, go read Jake Adelstein’s book “Tokyo Vice” and peruse his website

http://witzl.blogspot.com/ MaryWitzl

Well, they ARE VIPs, after all — Very Intimidating People.

Yakuza Bosses Given VIP Seats at Sumo Tournament

Recent Comments

Further Reading

Washington Times Freelancer Slams Former Employer, Fails to Ethically Disclose Relationship?

Christopher Johnson Attempts to Silence Criticism of His “Gaijin Gulag” Article (Legal Threats!!!)

Tabloid Reports About Yu Darvish’s Love Life: Kirara Asuka & Miho Koga?

Does K-Pop Group KARA Have Ties to North Korea?

Tokyo Gate Bridge

Sara Errani Admits She Avoided Tennis Tournament in Tokyo: Feared Radiation

Chinese Workers Who Survived March 11th Tsunami Return to Tohoku

Why’s Zippei So Quiet? TV Dog Had Vocal Cords Removed

UN: Fukushima Radiation Health Effects Will Be Relatively Small / Not At All Comparable to Chernobyl

Korean Ultra-Nationalists Lobby Virginia: Demand Textbooks Use Korea-centric Geography (“East Sea”) @SenDaveMarsden

Categories

Archives

Subscribe

Japan Blogs

Korea Blogs

Linkroll

Other Asia Blogs