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The Yakuza, as Japanese organized crime is
known, dates back to the 17th century. The word
Yakuza in Japanese means a worthless hand in a
card game. The Yakuza of today call themselves
"worthless persons and social outcasts." The Japanese National Police refer to them as "Boryokudan,"
or the "violent ones." The Yakuza are organized
into family and sub-family groups known as Gumi,
each owing its allegiance to an Oyabun, or Boss.
Yakuza members' loyalty to their leaders is expressed through ritualistic self-mutilation and tattooing. It is not uncommon, for instance, to see members with tattoos of snakes, birds and dragons covering their bodies, each tattoo being a symbol of an underworld achievement or a specific expression of loyalty to a particular crime boss or family. Other members have severed portions of their little fingers as a way of expressing their subservience. United States customs personnel in Hawaii seek out such characteristics on all in-coming flights from Japan in an effort to identify migrating Yakuza members. At the present time, the only evidence to suggest Yakuza activity in New Jersey is somewhat dated. In 1978, Englewood resident Hiroaki "Rocky" Aoki, owner of the Benihana Restaurant chain, and Yakuza associate Ryoichi Sasakawa attempted to lease the Shelbourne Hotel in Atlantic City for casino purposes. Shortly thereafter, the United States Securities and Exchange Commission charged Aoki and Takashi Sasakawa, the son of Ryoichi, with insider stock trading. The Sasakawas lost some $26.5 million in the business deal, Takashi Sasakawa was forced to make restitution to investors and the group never applied for a casino license. Recently, the Yakuza have been most active in southern California, the San Francisco Bay area and Nevada. California authorities believe that the Yakuza are investing in restaurants, commercial real estate and import-export firms, using the illegal profits from prostitution, extortion, narcotics, pornography, gambling and gun running. Another Yakuza criminal activity is the blackmailing of United States-based Japanese company employees who are in financial or personal trouble.
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