L ately, there has been a lot of news about a certain Japanese politician who profited personally from his interest in Russia. Tonight, on Nippon TV's newsmagazine "Document '02" (12:25 a.m.), we get to see the opposite: Russians who profit from their interest in Japan.

Otaru and Wakkanai, two fishing port towns in Hokkaido, have increasingly come under the influence of the Russian mafia. These two harbors take in huge hauls of crab every day, and it is estimated that most of the crab that is unloaded in the ports from Russian ships has been caught illegally.

Apparently, the customs officers in these ports are aware of this but allow it anyway because of the high demand for crab right now. According to one official, if Russian crab were kept out of the Japanese market, "the retail price of crab would double."