Noose’s shadow dangles over Japan s yakuza bosses – Asia Times

TOKYO A death sentence passed down last week on the kingpin of the most violent of Japan s yakuza gangs is a critical precedent, given the customary escape mechanisms used successfully by mob godfathers in the past.

The sentence, for one count of murder and three counts of attempted murder, was handed down on August 24 to Satoru Nomura, 74, head of the Fukuoka-based Kudo-kai syndicate. 

Subordinate members of his gang had previously been found guilty of the 1998 murder of the head of a fishing cooperative who had not granted the gang access to a lucrative harbor expansion project, as well as violent assaults on three other persons.

The fact that the Kudo-kai had made an enemy of a key member of the establishment Japan s longest-serving prime minister, Shinzo Abe, who remains a major player in the ruling Liberal Democratic Party likely did not improve Nomura s chances in court.

via asiatimes.com