Language | MORNING ENGLISH Aug 20, 2018
Japan Amateur Boxing Federation President Akira Yamane has quit following numerous allegations of misconduct, including pressuring referees to fix matches and misuse of grant money.
NEWSWORTHY
World / Politics Aug 15, 2018
An incoming member of Mexico's Congress was kidnapped at gunpoint Tuesday, an official said, the latest violent episode surrounding the July 1 elections, the bloodiest in the country's history. Azucena Rodriguez Zamora, who was elected to the lower house of Congress for the eastern state ...
World Aug 8, 2018
Italy's Salvini declares war on Mafia after migrant worker deaths
Italy's hard-line Interior Minister Matteo Salvini on Tuesday declared war on Mafia networks exploiting foreign agricultural workers after 16 died in two crashes in the country's south. The two nearly identical crashes, which came within 48 hours of each other outside the city of Foggia ...
National / Crime & Legal May 31, 2018
Japanese-style plea bargaining debuts but authorities fear spread of false testimony
by Sakura Murakami
Japan on Friday introduced a bargaining system as part of an overhaul of its criminal investigation and trial systems, while battling concerns the new practice could encourage suspects or defendants to make false statements that lead to miscarriages of justice. The new bargaining system, which ...
National / Media | DARK SIDE OF THE RISING SUN May 5, 2018
In Japan, a high-profile former gangster struggles to go straight
by Jake Adelstein
Everyone loves a tale of redemption. Unfortunately, this isn't going to be one of them. In a previous column, I introduced a man who had gone from being a greedy, violent, self-centered boss of an organized crime syndicate to become a compassionate male nurse. It's ...
National / Crime & Legal Apr 12, 2018
The number of crime syndicate members in Japan fell to a record low of 34,500 in 2017, down for the 13th straight year, amid stronger police crackdowns, National Police Agency data showed Thursday. The figure dropped by about 4,600 from a year earlier to its ...
World / Crime & Legal Apr 1, 2018
Russian billionaire Magomedov arrested on embezzlement charges
Russian authorities on Saturday arrested billionaire Ziyavudin Magomedov on charges of embezzling more than $35 million, in one of the highest-profile prosecutions of a Russian tycoon in years. Magomedov denied the charges at a pre-trial hearing, where a judge ordered that he be held in ...
National / Media | DARK SIDE OF THE RISING SUN Mar 31, 2018
'The Outsider' scores a few hits among the misses
by Jake Adelstein
Netflix last month released a yakuza film starring Jared Leto titled "The Outsider" to critical disdain. And as much as I expected to hate the movie, I didn't. It's portrayal of the world of organized crime in Japan after World War II is not ...
National / Crime & Legal Mar 16, 2018
Japan to allow plea bargaining from June amid overhaul of criminal justice system
The government on Friday decided to introduce the right to plea bargain on June 1 by putting into force a revised law on criminal proceedings. A decree approved by the Cabinet will allow plea bargaining in a variety of cases, including crimes related to drugs, ...
Business Feb 28, 2018
Japan looks to curb company establishment by organized crime groups
The Justice Ministry unveils measures to restrict the establishment of joint stock companies by organized crime syndicates in a move aimed at preventing fraud and money laundering.
National / Crime & Legal Feb 26, 2018
Police have launched a series of raids at locations linked to yakuza crime syndicates over their alleged organized involvement in simultaneous fraudulent ATM withdrawals totaling ¥1.8 billion in 2016. The raids Monday covered five offices of yakuza groups, including the headquarters of the Yamaguchi-gumi in ...
National / Crime & Legal Feb 20, 2018
Fukuoka to offer financial help for gangsters trying to leave crime syndicates
Yakuza who wish to cut ties with crime groups — yet fear a backlash and cannot seek refuge elsewhere — will be entitled to the program.