No Settlement Money, Yet a Suspended Sentence? How an Alleged Yakuza Boss Avoided Prison

Gang members present in the gallery

The trial of Masatoshi Yonamine (50 at the time of his arrest), head of the Yonamine-gumi, a subordinate organization of the Kōhei Ikka under the Sumiyoshi-kai, was held at the Tokyo District Court on June 8. He is charged with assault after allegedly throwing a man to the ground on a street in Nerima Ward, Tokyo.

Dressed in a white sweatshirt and sweatpants, Yonamine entered the courtroom. Several men believed to be members of his organization stood up from the public gallery and bowed deeply to him. Standing at the witness stand, his broad, muscular back was visible even through the loose-fitting sweatshirt, giving him an intimidating presence. When asked to state his occupation during the identity check, he replied bluntly, “Unemployed.”

The incident took place last year. According to the indictment, one of Yonamine’s junior members became involved in a payment dispute at a snack bar, during which the male manager tore the subordinate’s T-shirt. After arriving at the scene, Yonamine allegedly confronted the manager, saying:

“How dare you tear my subordinate’s T-shirt?”

He then allegedly performed an osoto-gari (major outer reap judo throw), slamming the manager onto the street. Yonamine admitted the charges, stating:

“I admit it.”

A reporter covering organized crime explained:

“At the time of his arrest, Yonamine complained, saying, ‘I was only trying to mediate, so I don’t understand why I was arrested.’

The Kōhei Ikka has now become the largest yakuza organization in Tokyo and is believed to have ties to ‘tokuryū’ (anonymous, fluid criminal groups) as well as the country’s largest illegal prostitution scouting organization, ‘Natural.’

In January this year, the Metropolitan Police Department established a Special Countermeasures Headquarters for the Kōhei Ikka. At the launch press conference, Organized Crime Division Superintendent Toshihiko Ōba declared, ‘If it involves the Kōhei Ikka, we will crack down on every crime connected to them.’

Although this was not a major incident, the trial attracted attention because of the organization’s involvement.”

During questioning, Yonamine maintained the same position he had taken when arrested. Asked again by his attorney about his motive, he said:

“Both sides were arguing. What I did was simply to separate them in order to mediate the situation.”

He also claimed that the matter had already been settled between the parties:

“We discussed it through our lawyers with the owner (the victim).”

He emphasized that the dispute had been resolved amicably, noting that the victim had submitted a settlement statement indicating he did not seek criminal punishment.

However, prosecutors questioned the nature of the settlement, pointing out that no settlement money had been paid. Asked why, Yonamine explained:

“I was only trying to mediate. The owner also apologized. He wasn’t injured, and it wasn’t a serious incident, so money never became part of the discussion.”

Although he had identified himself as unemployed during the identity check, prosecutors later asked whether he was the head of a yakuza organization. He answered:

“Yes.”

When asked whether he intended to continue his activities as a gang boss, he again replied:

“Yes.”

“The Yakuza keep their word,” is a myth

Finally, the presiding judge again asked Yonamine about the incident. While maintaining that he had merely been trying to break up the altercation, he admitted, “I suppose I went a little too far.”

Asked what he would do if faced with a similar situation again, he replied:

“I think I’d still step in to stop it. But I’ll make sure it doesn’t escalate into violence. (Omitted.) I guess I went a little too far. Being in detention gave me time to think about it.”

Although he expressed remorse, he never once apologized to the victim.

The prosecution argued that:

“Although a settlement was reached, no settlement payment was made. If the proposal came from a yakuza boss, the victim would have been in no position to refuse.”

It sought a sentence of one year of imprisonment. At the defense’s request, the court delivered its verdict the same day, sentencing Yonamine to one year in prison, suspended for three years.

Journalist Yukio Ishihara, an expert on Japan’s underworld, commented:

“There’s a term for yakuza: ‘sujimono’ (‘people of principle’), which comes from the saying that ‘yakuza keep their word.’ I think that’s a lie. They’ll exploit any opportunity to deceive, steal, or take advantage of someone. If there’s an opening, they’ll use it.

In this case as well, as the prosecution pointed out, they likely knew they could avoid harsher consequences by pressuring the victim, which is probably why no discussion of settlement money ever took place.

Today, yakuza groups have been squeezed by the Anti-Organized Crime Law and local anti-yakuza ordinances. They’re desperately short of money. That’s why they’re increasingly relying on ‘tokuryū’ (loosely organized anonymous criminal groups) to make up for lost income. Even so, they’re continuing to weaken.

On top of that, the Kōhei Ikka imposes particularly heavy tribute payments on its members. Rather than paying settlement money to a victim, they’d much rather send that money up the chain of command. That’s how financially strained they are.”

There is little doubt that pressure on the Kōhei Ikka will only intensify in the years ahead.