THE ASAHI SHIMBUN
April 8, 2025 at 17:30 JST
Top executives of Yamaguchi-gumi, the largest crime syndicate in Japan, submitted a pledge to Hyogo prefectural police to end wars with its splinter groups on April 7.
After members split off from the Yamaguchi-gumi and formed Kobe Yamaguchi-gumi in 2015, the two groups and other splinter groups have engaged in violent conflicts in various locations.
This time, the Yamaguchi-gumi appeared to have made a one-sided pledge to end the fighting, and the police will remain on alert about the actions of each yakuza group.
Investigative sources said that three top executives of Yamaguchi-gumi visited prefectural police on the afternoon of April 7 and promised to end the conflicts and never cause trouble again.
EFFECTIVE POLICE CRACKDOWN
In August 2015, some gangs of the Yamaguchi-gumi left the group and formed Kobe Yamaguchi-gumi.
The split is said to have been caused by strong dissatisfaction with the management of the Yamaguchi-gumi, which was centered around the Kodo-kai.
Kodo-kai, based in Nagoya, is the organization that Yamaguchi-gumi's leader Kenichi Shinoda, who is also known as Shinobu Tsukasa, originated from.
Violent conflicts broke out immediately after the split, resulting in deaths and injuries for members of both groups.
In January 2020, both groups were designated as dangerous criminal organizations based on the anti-organized crime law.
Subsequently, their activities were significantly restricted in designated areas, including being prohibited from using gang offices and from gathering in groups of five or more members.
The Yamaguchi-gumi is also in conflict with the Kizuna-kai, which split off from Kobe Yamaguchi-gumi in 2017, and the Ikeda-gumi, which announced its separation from Kobe Yamaguchi-gumi in 2020.
Both Kizuna-kai and Ikeda-gumi also have been designated as dangerous criminal organizations.
According to the White Paper on Police published by the National Police Agency, as of the end of 2024, the Yamaguchi-gumi had 3,300 members, while the Kobe Yamaguchi-gumi had 120, and both the Kizuna-kai and the Ikeda-gumi had 60 each.
As police crackdowns have made it harder for gangs to raise funds, yakuza groups continue to shrink across the country. At the same time, the gaps in power between the Yamaguchi-gumi and other rival groups are widening.
Forced to close offices, yakuza activity now less visible for police
June 9, 2023
‘Kamikaze car’ attacks signal resumption of yakuza turf war
June 10, 2022
NPA data shows 18th straight year of gang member numbers falling
March 23, 2023
Even with tough crackdowns, gangs squeezing small businesses
March 26, 2023
A peek through the music industry’s curtain at the producers who harnessed social media to help their idols go global.
A series based on diplomatic documents declassified by Japan’s Foreign Ministry
Here is a collection of first-hand accounts by “hibakusha” atomic bomb survivors.
Cooking experts, chefs and others involved in the field of food introduce their special recipes intertwined with their paths in life.
A series about Japanese-Americans and their memories of World War II
