Top Yakuza Executives from the Sumiyoshi-kai Appear in Shin-Yokohama in Broad Daylight… The Inside Story of How “Seven Prominent Yakuza Groups in the Kanto Region” Gathered at the Inagawa-kai’s Operational Base

A visit by hardline Okinawan yakuza

It was mid-July in Yokohama, Kanagawa Prefecture, where “midsummer days” with temperatures exceeding 30 degrees had continued for three consecutive days. At the Inagawa Kaikan—the operational headquarters of the designated organized crime group Inagawa-kai, located in the suburbs—dozens of gang members dressed in suits and ties were lined up in formation from early morning.The hall’s steel doors were closed, making it impossible to see inside from the outside, but the sounds of members practicing greetings—such as “Thank you for your hard work!”—to welcome the top executives of other groups about to arrive occasionally echoed out onto the street.

“The Chairman has arrived!”

Shortly after 10:00 a.m., a particularly loud voice rang out.Stepping out of the back seat of a Century in front of the hall was Kazuyuki Uchibori, Chairman of the Inagawa-kai. After bowing to the approximately 20 investigators from the Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department, the Kanagawa Prefectural Police, and the Ibaraki Prefectural Police who were on security duty at the front of the hall, he walked through the iron doors with a stern expression.

Under the blazing sun—so intense that their shirts clung to their skin just from standing there—the gang members remained lined up without so much as a flicker, even after Chairman Uchibori’s arrival. They were preparing to welcome the top executives of other organizations, who would be arriving one after another. What exactly was taking place that day?

“Hideji Chinen, the third-generation chairman of the Asahiryu-kai—a designated organized crime group known for its militant stance in Okinawa Prefecture—visited various groups in the Kanto region to formally announce his succession.”In April of this year, Asahiryu-kai’s second-generation chairman, Shin Itokazu, died unexpectedly in a fire, and the third-generation leadership under Chairman Chinen had only just been established in June.

The venue for this event was the Inagawa Kaikan. The groups that welcomed him to celebrate his succession were the member organizations of the “Kanto Friendship Association.” After Chairman Uchibori of the Inagawa-kai, who served as host, arrived, the leaders and top executives of the Matsuba-kai, Tosho-kai, Sumiyoshi-kai, Kyokuto-kai, Kanto Sekine-gumi, and Soai-kai attended in that order. We have heard that the Asahiryu-kai had also paid a courtesy call the day before to a group under the Kodo-kai umbrella in Aichi Prefecture, which is affiliated with the Sixth-Generation Yamaguchi-gumi. Although the Kokusuikai , which is a secondary group of the Sixth-Generation Yamaguchi-gumi. Perhaps because the Sixth-Generation Yamaguchi-gumi had already received greetings the previous day, they did not attend,” said a journalist familiar with the yakuza industry.

Shortly before 11:30 a.m., just as attendees from the seven organizations had all gathered, a motorcade from the Inagawa-kai arrived at Haneda Airport, having gone to pick up Third-Generation Chairman Chinen. Six top executives, including Third-Generation Chairman Chinen, stepped out of the vehicles.Greeted by an even louder chorus of “Thank you for your hard work!”, the ceremony to celebrate the succession began around 11:40 a.m.

A photographer who was covering the event on the hall’s grounds described the scene inside.

“Before Chairman Uchibori arrived, gang members were carrying trays of sliced melon into the hall. After Chairman Chinen and the others had gathered, ‘red rice bento boxes’ were distributed to the members lined up outside, and the Japanese national flag was also displayed at the hall. It definitely felt like a celebratory atmosphere.I wasn’t able to enter the hall itself, so I don’t know the details, but after the meeting ended, Chairman Uchibori emerged alongside Chairman Chinen and, smiling and chatting, saw off Chairman Chinen and the rest of the Asahiryu-kai delegation.”

Around 12:20 p.m., after the Asahiryu-kai motorcade left the hall, the motorcades of the seven participating organizations also departed the venue one after another, and by 12:30 p.m., the meeting had concluded without a hitch.

The Details of the Inagawa-kai’s “Agenda”

That said, it is highly unusual for the top brass of every organization in the “Kanto Friendship Association” to gather for the succession ceremony of a single group. This suggests that the strategic intentions of both the Sixth-Generation Yamaguchi-gumi and the Inagawa-kai—which served as the host on this occasion—were intertwined. The journalist mentioned earlier explains:

“Within the Sixth-Generation Yamaguchi-gumi, Deputy Leader Shomei Takeuchi (66), the group’s number two, is putting into practice the principle of ‘peaceful coexistence within yakuza society’ championed by Chairman Shinobu Tsukasa (84).Relations with the Asahiryu-kai can also be described as good, as evidenced by the fact that top executives, including Vice-Chairman Takeuchi, attended a memorial service for the late Second-Generation Chairman Itokazu.

Vice-Chairman Takeuchi and Chairman Uchibori have exchanged the ‘Five-Part Brotherhood Cup.’ It is likely that the Inagawa-kai intended to accelerate the Sixth-Generation Yamaguchi-gumi’s ‘peaceful coexistence’ policy by gathering the various organizations of the ‘Kanto Friendship Association’ at its own headquarters for the Asahiryu-kai’s succession ceremony.Furthermore, it can be said that this outcome allowed the Inagawa-kai to demonstrate its influence in the Kanto region to the “New Asahiryu-kai.”

The Inagawa-kai has, in the past, taken a central role in events at the heart of controversy.

“Last April, the Sixth-Generation Yamaguchi-gumi submitted a written pledge of a ‘Declaration of End to the Feud’ to the Hyogo Prefectural Police, albeit unilaterally. In preparing that pledge, it was Chairman Uchibori who traveled around the country to visit the Sixth-Generation Yamaguchi-gumi’s affiliated groups, carrying a petition calling for an end to the feud and seeking their endorsement.

This is not the first time the Inagawa-kai has taken a leading role when a major trend has emerged. As the leadership under Vice-Chairman Takeuchi becomes increasingly solid, there is no doubt that the Inagawa-kai, led by Chairman Uchibori, will continue to grow in prominence,” (ibid.)

On April 7 of last year, the very day the “pledge” was submitted to police authorities, a meeting was held in advance at the Inagawa-kai Hall to discuss ending the feud with the Kobe Yamaguchi-gumi. The meeting was attended by the “Big Three”—Seiji Takayama, Wakagashira of the Sixth-Generation Yamaguchi-gumi (his title at the time; currently an advisor, age 78),Sumiyoshi-kai Chairman Shuji Ogawa, and Inagawa-kai Chairman Uchibori—the so-called “Big Three”—held talks aimed at ending the feud with the Kobe Yamaguchi-gumi, and the venue for that meeting was also the Inagawa Kaikan.It is said that during that meeting, the Sixth-Generation Yamaguchi-gumi side agreed to the “list of demands” prepared by Chairman Uchibori, and that this marked a turning point, with an “agreement to end the feud” having been reached.

On the other hand, the triple designation of the Sixth-Generation Yamaguchi-gumi and its rival groups—the Kobe Yamaguchi-gumi, the Ikeda-gumi, and the Kizuna-kai—as “violent groups engaged in specific conflicts” has still not been lifted.Amid this eerie stalemate, the Sixth-Generation Yamaguchi-gumi’s “peaceful coexistence” diplomatic strategy continues to advance—and within that strategy, the role played by the Inagawa-kai appears to be growing ever larger.