Chairman Kazuya Uchibori personally holds the mortuary tablet in front of 60 members… The tense inner workings of the “secret funeral of the president of the Inagawa-kai” in which all direct members were summoned to attend.

On the morning of April 26, the start of this year’s GW, which is said to be “up to 11 consecutive holidays,” strong men in black suits and black ties were gathering one after another at a hall in Kawasaki City, Kanagawa Prefecture, called “Yamakawa. There were more than 60 people in attendance. The atmosphere was tense and tense from early in the morning, the opposite of the upbeat mood of the public.

Around 10:00 a.m., investigators from Kanagawa Prefectural Police, Kawasaki Police Department, and the Metropolitan Police Department arrived, and about 10 people went on alert in front of the hall. What in the world was going on in a quiet residential area?

This hall is the headquarters of the Yamakawa family, a secondary organization of the Inakawakai. Inside the hall, a farewell ceremony was being held for Inakawakai President Jiro Kiyota (86 years old), who passed away on April 21. The Yamakawa family is the organization from which President Kiyota came. However, these are the times we live in. There were no signs with the deceased’s name written on them, no decorative lanterns, and no wreaths, and the ceremony was held in a secret funeral style. Everyone from the chairman Kazuya Uchibori on down attended the service,” said a journalist familiar with the gang situation.

On the 22nd, the day after President Kiyota’s death, Shinobu Tsukasa, 83, head of the Yamaguchigumi VI, visited to pay his respects together with Seiji Takayama, 77, who was appointed as “advisor” from the new position of “young head” and Shomei Takeuchi, 65, newly appointed as “young head.

The two have a close relationship, having shared a five-minute brother’s cup with Inagawa-kai President Uchibori. Because of the news of the president’s death, the top three members, including the head of the Tsukasa clan, came to pay their condolences. This farewell ceremony was a secret funeral for the Inagawa-kai only, and the funeral inviting friendly groups such as the Yamaguchigumi VI and Sumiyoshikai is scheduled to be held in the middle of this month.

The inside story of the “secret funeral” of the Inagawa-kai president

The secret funeral began at 1:30 p.m. and was held in the hall where the body was laid to rest, with the participation of all of the more than 60 direct attendees, including Chairman Uchibori. Participants burned incense one after another, and the ceremony ended before 2:30 pm. The ceremony was held in a quiet manner with only the members of the union present. As the name “secret funeral” implies, it was a quiet affair. At the time of the casket, Mr. Uchibori, with a stern expression on his face, rode in the passenger seat of the hearse with President Kiyota’s mortuary tablet in his hand, and moved to the funeral hall.

The “mourner” was Mrs. Kiyota. Chairman Uchibori is in charge of all funeral-related matters in his capacity as “host. The fact that he got into the passenger seat of the hearse in which the body was laid to rest, with his tablets in his hand, shows his strong determination as the ‘master’ not only for this secret funeral but also for the Inagawa-kai funerals to be held in the future,” said another journalist familiar with the yakuza industry.

President Kiyota’s remains were cremated and placed at his home. The tightened expression on Chairman Uchibori’s face at the farewell ceremony showed his determination to move on to the next era.