The is a

yakuza , also known as , are members of transnational organized crime syndicates originating in Japan. The Japanese police and media, by request of the police, call them , while the ''yakuza'' call themselves . The English equivalent for the ter ...

organization An organization or organisation (Commonwealth English; see spelling differences), is an entity—such as a company, an institution, or an association—comprising one or more people and having a particular purpose. The word is derived f ...

based in

Osaka is a designated city in the Kansai region of Honshu in Japan. It is the capital of and most populous city in Osaka Prefecture, and the third most populous city in Japan, following Special wards of Tokyo and Yokohama. With a population of ...

Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the n ...

."Police of Japan 2011, Criminal Investigation : 2. Fight Against Organized Crime"
December 2009, ''

National Police Agency National Police may refer to the national police forces of several countries: *Afghanistan: Afghan National Police *Haiti: Haitian National Police *Colombia: National Police of Colombia *Cuba: Cuban National Police *East Timor: National Police of ...

'' The Sakaume-gumi is a designated yakuza group with an estimated 30 active members. The Sakaume-gumi is an old-established, small group that focuses primarily on gambling, and not on other activities like extortion and drugs. Perhaps because of this, it has had relatively good relations with the local police. When Japan passed new anti-

boryokudan , also known as , are members of transnational organized crime syndicates originating in Japan. The Japanese police and media, by request of the police, call them , while the ''yakuza'' call themselves . The English equivalent for the term ...

laws in 1992, the Sakaume-gumi was one of the few

Kansai The or the , lies in the southern-central region of Japan's main island Honshu, Honshū. The region includes the Prefectures of Japan, prefectures of Nara Prefecture, Nara, Wakayama Prefecture, Wakayama, Kyoto Prefecture, Kyoto, Osaka Prefectur ...

-based groups not to launch legal challenges against the new legislation. At a hearing, the group's representative stated, "If the Sakaume-gumi fulfills conditions for designation (as a boryokudan group), we have no choice but to accept it."

History

The Sakaume-gumi was registered as a designated yakuza group under the Organized Crime Countermeasures Law in May 1993.

Condition

The Sakaume-gumi is one of the two designated yakuza groups based in the

Osaka Prefecture is a prefecture of Japan located in the Kansai region of Honshu. Osaka Prefecture has a population of 8,778,035 () and has a geographic area of . Osaka Prefecture borders Hyōgo Prefecture to the northwest, Kyoto Prefecture to the north, Nar ...

, along with the

Azuma-gumi The is a yakuza organization based in Osaka, Japan.

, and maintains its headquarters office in Nishinari, Osaka."2010 Police White Paper Chapter 2 : Furtherance of Organized Crime Countermeasures"
2010, ''

'' One former member of the Sakaume-gumi has achieved a measure of fame in another field:

born-again Born again, or to experience the new birth, is a phrase, particularly in evangelicalism, that refers to a "spiritual rebirth", or a regeneration of the human spirit. In contrast to one's physical birth, being "born again" is distinctly and sep ...

Christianity. Rev Hiroyuki Suzuki, a

tattooed A tattoo is a form of body modification made by inserting tattoo ink, dyes, and/or pigments, either indelible or temporary, into the dermis layer of the skin to form a design. Tattoo artists create these designs using several tattooing ...

, pinky-missing former Sakaume-gumi gangster, has become an

evangelical Evangelicalism (), also called evangelical Christianity or evangelical Protestantism, is a worldwide interdenominational movement within Protestant Christianity that affirms the centrality of being " born again", in which an individual expe ...

Christian Christians () are people who follow or adhere to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. The words ''Christ'' and ''Christian'' derive from the Koine Greek title ''Christós'' (Χρι� ...

preacher."He Watched Over His Rackets; Now It's His Flock"
22 June 1999, ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...

References

{{Designated Boryokudan Yakuza groups