The Silent Hitman
Yakuza: The Warlords of Organized Crime
=the most sophisticatedand wealthiest of criminal organizations=
Yakuza: The Warlords of Organized Crime
=the most sophisticatedand wealthiest of criminal organizations=
Since 15th century in illegitimate businesses,
an array of criminal and non-criminal activities.
1. The Yakuza are the largest criminal organization in the world.an array of criminal and non-criminal activities.
2. The name Yakuza comes from Oicho-Kabu, a game similar to blackjack. Ya-ku-za (8-9-3) is said to be a losing hand.
3. The power structure within a Yazuka crime syndicate is a typical pyramid structure, with the head at the top and power disseminated into his loyal henchmen. However, it gets a little more complicated. True to Japanese tradition, there is unwavering loyalty and complete obedience that comes with this. Oyabun — or the father counsels and protects the kobun — the child, and the kobun is expected to lay down his life for the oyabun.
4. Yakuza membership surged to 184,000 members after World War II, which is just half the entire Japanese police force (291,475 personnel in 2010).
5. Punishment is doled out through physical violence. Failure to complete a task ends up with yubizume, which is amputation of a part of the little finger.
This act makes it so that the punished becomes more dependent on his superior for protection.
8. Sumo wrestling events are usually rife with Yakuza members.
9. Kazuo Taoka was the oyabun of Japan’s largest Yakuza family, Yamaguchi-gumi. He was nicknamed “Kuma” (“Bear”) for attacking his opponent’s eyes. He was shot in the back of the neck, but survived. His attacker was found dead weeks later in some woods surrounding Kobe.
10. The Yakuza have a firm hand in the pornography industry in Japan. But that’s not all, they also have a big role in sex trafficking and firearms smuggling.
11. The Yakuza are adept at corporate blackmail and extortion. They have a specific group dedicated for this, called sokaiya. The sokaiya gather information about the company — especially on the officers. Once they get details on mistresses, violations swept under the rug, secret meetings, financial problems, they extort the management for “compensation.” And the sokaiya always gets what they want.
12. There are reported Yakuza activity in the United States. Most of the activity is in Hawaii, but they have been reported in California, Nevada and New York.
The yakuza have also put down roots in California where they have made alliances with Korean and Vietnamese gangs and furthered their traditional partnerships with the Chinese triads. Los Angeles is particularly attractive because of the influx of young actresses desperate to get their big break in the film industry. Yakuza shills have become adept at luring these vulnerable women into porn films and prostitution. Japanese men, whether on sex tours or at home in Japan, often desire western women, particularly blondes. – crimelibrary
13. The Yakuza see violent death as poetic, tragic and an honorable way to die. They also help the weak and steal from the rich. These romantic notions actually put the gang in a favorable light in the public’s eye.
14. The Yakuza responded to the tsunami catastrophe faster than the Japanese government did. The Yakuza delivered food, water, blankets and toiletries to evacuation centers in northeast Japan.
15. The Yakuza are known to play in the political sphere and align themselves with nationalist, right-wing parties. This bode well for the two, giving the Yakuza a place to meddle in politics within legal boundaries, and politicians to employ the Yakuza for illegal activities.
During the formation of the Yakuza, they adopted the traditional Japanese hierarchical structure of oyabun-kobun where kobun (子分; lit. foster child) owe their allegiance to the oyabun (親分, lit. foster parent). In a much later period, the code of jingi (仁義, justice and duty) was developed where loyalty and respect are a way of life.
Each member's connection is ranked by the hierarchy of sakazuki (sake sharing). Kumicho is at the top and controls various saikō-komon (最高顧問, senior advisors). The saikō-komon control their own turfs in different areas or cities. They have their own underlings, including other underbosses, advisors, accountants, and enforcers.
Those who have received sake from oyabun are part of the immediate family and ranked in terms of elder or younger brothers. However, each kobun, in turn, can offer sakazuki as oyabun to his underling to form an affiliated organization, which might in turn form lower-ranked organizations.
Three largest syndicates[edit]
The Yakuza are still very active, and although Yakuza membership has declined since the implementation of the Anti-Boryokudan Act in 1992, there are still approximately 12,300 active Yakuza members in Japan as of 2021, although it is possible that they are a lot more active than statistics say.[2] The Yakuza does not consist of just one group, rather there are many different syndicate groups that together form one of the largest organized crime groups in the world
YAKUZA DIVISIONS
Yamaguchi-gumi MAIN DIVISION Sumiyoshi-kai Inagawa-kai
