Yakuza Boss Reveals ‘500 Million Yen in Illegal Drugs’ Hidden in Muay Thai Mitt

When customs officials opened the cardboard box, they found boxing equipment inside. A hair band used by Muay Thai athletes and an amulet …… to be worn before a fight. However, these items were probably just camouflage to hide them from the customs officials. About 3 kg of dried marijuana was found in the practice mitts.

On October 29, the Metropolitan Police Department’s Anti-Drug and Firearms Division arrested Masanobu Oiwa, 55, an unemployed Inagawa-kai gang leader from Chiba City, Chiba Prefecture, on suspicion of violating the Marijuana Control Law. He allegedly imported marijuana from Thailand to Haneda Airport for commercial purposes.

The incident was discovered on February 24 of this year. Oiwa apparently intended to deliver dried marijuana to a residence in Chiba City via express mail. In recent years, there has been a string of illegal drug smuggling cases. When Tokyo Customs officials at Haneda Airport meticulously checked a cardboard box of international mail, they found a large quantity of marijuana hidden in a Muay Thai mitt inside.

So far, the Metropolitan Police Department has arrested about 40 people, including couriers and customers of a group engaged in large-scale drug smuggling. Some of them have stated that they did it under (Oiwa’s) instruction. Oiwa is believed to be the ringleader of the smuggling group. The smuggling group imports illegal drugs from all over the world, including Thailand, Switzerland, and South Africa. From December last year to April this year, police seized nearly 500 million yen worth of illegal drugs, including MDMA, methamphetamine, and marijuana, from locations related to the group,” said a reporter from the society department of a national newspaper.

53 rubber bands containing cocaine were seized from inside the body.

A photographer for this magazine photographed the October 31st inspection of the Oiwa suspects. He was sitting deeply in the backseat of the convoy, wearing black sunglasses and a mask, showing his impudent and intimidating true face. The police have not revealed the suspect’s identity.

Illegal drug smuggling continues to be an ongoing problem. The following are some of the major incidents that have occurred since the beginning of this year.

In May, a well-known former fighter was arrested on suspicion of violating the Narcotics Control Law. He allegedly tried to send chocolates containing narcotic ingredients from Hawaii to his home in Saitama Prefecture via international parcel post. Tokyo Customs found the chocolates upon arrival at Narita Airport. Since it was in the package of a product that was on the market, it is believed that the contents were replaced. His wife, a foreign national, was also arrested for complicity.

In September, a man in his 20s was arrested by the Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department for attempting to smuggle approximately 265 grams of cocaine. When Tokyo Customs officials who were marking the man at Haneda Airport approached him, the man claimed that he had a stomachache. When he went to the restroom with customs officials, they found more than 10 cocoon-shaped rubbers along with excrement. Cocaine was detected inside. Further X-ray examination revealed nearly 40 rubbers inside the man’s body. In total, 53 rubbers contained a large amount of cocaine. The man was hospitalized for a week before being arrested.

In some cases, people are arrested after receiving a request from an acquaintance to “deliver this package to Japan” without knowing that it contains illegal drugs. The police believe that the drug smuggling groups mentioned at the beginning of this article are involved in at least seven cases, and are hurrying to uncover the full picture of their organization.