Background of “gangster stabbed to death on the street in Akihabara by a person involved in a “con cafe

Call an ambulance: ……”

A man lying on the street held his wounded mouth with his hand and complained to passersby in distress. By the time paramedics responded to the call, he was unconscious. He was transported to the hospital, but was confirmed dead several hours later.

The deceased was Kenji Yamanaka, 34, a Yamaguchigumi gang leader who lived in Taito Ward, Tokyo. Yamanaka, who had been stabbed in the left side of his body with a knife, was found lying on the floor just after 6:30 p.m. on July 21. The location was a downtown area about 200 meters from JR Akihabara Station.

According to witnesses, they could see the handle of the knife used in the crime on the victim’s stomach. The police officer who received the 110 call said, ‘Lie down, an ambulance will be here soon. The police officer who received the 110 call encouraged the victim, saying, ‘Just lie down, an ambulance will be here soon,’ but it seems that he was bleeding so badly that blood was pouring out onto the street.

Gang members whose “work” has decreased.

Immediately after the incident, Fumitoshi Sasaki, 35, a suspect with an unknown occupation from Sagamihara City, Kanagawa Prefecture, turned himself in to the nearby Bansebashi Police Station of the Metropolitan Police Department. The next day, the police arrested Sasaki on suspicion of murder.

On the day of the incident, Sasaki and Yamanaka were at a coffee shop in Akihabara. They were having a discussion with a male acquaintance. When Yamanaka-san left the restaurant, Sasaki stabbed him to death with a knife he was carrying. He told the police, “I stabbed him in my haste. There is no doubt about it.

It is believed that there was trouble between Sasaki and Yamanaka. The suspect was working for a “con-cafe” (concept café), and it appears that he and Yamanaka were having financial trouble. It is said that he was being demanded to pay a ‘protection fee.

The murder of a gang leader by a café employee is an unusual crime. Former Kanagawa Prefectural Police detective and crime journalist Taihei Ogawa explains the background of the case.

Many gang members are having trouble making a living because their “shinogi (means of earning income)” have been reduced due to the strengthening of the Anti-Boryokudan Law (Anti-Organized Crime Law). It is possible that the impoverished victims were demanding a “protection fee” quite strongly.

Certainly, mentioning the name of a gang and demanding a “protection fee” is a violation of the Violence Against Gangsters Law. However, this does not mean that the suspect committed the crime in self-defense. It seems that he was not attacked by the victim and stabbed him suddenly. The restaurant business is probably struggling due to the new coronavirus and other factors. The suspect may have prepared the knife in advance, anticipating trouble if he refused to pay the “protection money.

The police are investigating the details of the trouble between Sasaki and Yamanaka.