National / Media | BIG IN JAPAN Sep 25, 2021
The trial of a yakuza boss ends with a death sentence … and a threat
by Mark Schreiber
An ominous warning from a crime boss as he is sentenced gets the Japanese tabloids in a real stir.
National / Crime & Legal Aug 24, 2021
Satoru Nomura, the boss of a group described by public safety officials as the most violent in Japan, was sentenced over four cases of attacks on civilians, including a deadly one.
Film / Reviews Aug 19, 2021
‘Last of the Wolves’: A sequel with just as much bite as the first
by Mark Schilling
The follow-up to Kazuya Shiraishi’s “The Blood of Wolves” features emotionally raw and poignant moments in the middle of violent gang power struggles.
Books May 2, 2021
‘Tokyo Junkie’: Robert Whiting recounts a lifelong addiction to his adopted city
by Mark Schreiber
The author and longtime Japan resident tackles his hardest writing project ever — “interviewing himself” for a memoir on his life, the changing urban landscape and, of course, baseball.
Film / Reviews Feb 10, 2021
‘Under the Open Sky’: Harsh realities about ex-cons hit home
by Mark Schilling
Koji Yakusho delivers a captivating performance as a former yakuza thug struggling to adjust to life after leaving prison in Miwa Nishikawa’s drama.
Film / Reviews Jan 27, 2021
‘A Family’: This sentimental ode to yakuza life ignores reality
by Mark Schilling
Michihito Fujii’s yakuza film waxes nostalgic about the old-school days of gangsterdom with soggy sentimentality.
National / Crime & Legal Nov 5, 2020
E-money laundering in Japan nearly tripled in 2019, police say
The 3,913 cases reported by nonbank operators of funds transfer services during the year compare to 1,391 in 2018, according to the National Police Agency
National / Media | DARK SIDE OF THE RISING SUN Jul 4, 2020
Nonaffiliated gangs seek to exploit vacuum left by the yakuza’s declining influence
by Jake Adelstein
Violent gangs are starting to make their presence felt in western Japan, with incidents of armed robbery and violent crime clearly on the rise.
National / Media | DARK SIDE OF THE RISING SUN Jun 6, 2020
Crime syndicate puts brakes on fraudulent activities during pandemic
by Jake Adelstein
Gang leadership says it's wrong to “rob (elderly) individuals of the money they need to live.”
National Jun 5, 2020
The authorities said their reasoning was that most such people are members of anti-social organizations such as organized crime syndicates.
National / Media | BIG IN JAPAN May 23, 2020
Rats, bugs, crooks and trucks share media spotlight amid pandemic
by Mark Schreiber
With city dwellers around the world in lockdown, increasing reports have surfaced about wild animals infiltrating urban areas. Tokyo is no exception, although "wild" isn’t quite appropriate in this case. As a sanitation worker in Tokyo's Shinjuku Ward relates to Shukan Gendai (May 16), "From ...
National / Crime & Legal May 14, 2020
Fukuoka aimed for the top in taking down Kudokai yakuza group
Arrest of a leader essentially put an end to the many crimes the syndicate had been suspected of being involved in since the late 1990s.