Nagasaki Mayor is Shot and Killed

Nagasaki Mayor is Shot and Killed

www.iht.com

TOKYO: The mayor of Nagasaki was shot and killed Tuesday night in a brazen attack by a gangster who was apparently enraged that the city had refused to compensate him after his car was damaged at a public works construction site, the police said.

The mayor, Iccho Ito, 61, was shot twice in the back at point-blank range outside a train station said Rumi Tsujimoto, a Nagasaki police official.

One bullet struck Ito's heart and he went into cardiac arrest, said Kenzo Kusano, a spokesman for Nagasaki University Hospital. He died after emergency surgery, said Hirofumi Ito, an official with the Nagasaki prefectural police.

(visit the link for the full news article)


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This was perpetrated by a member of the largest organized-crime syndicate in the country.

The shooter was apprehended and confessed to the crime.

Will the Japanese authorities come sown hard on the syndicate? I have seen members from Japan maybe they can give an opinion on how this will be handled.

www.iht.com
(visit the link for the full news article)

Sme more details on the reason for the shooting in this article, it appears the shooter was upset that the city didn't reimburse him for damage to his car in 2003.

Story link

The shooting of Ito had no political undertones, though Shiroo and Ito clashed once before when his car was damaged after driving over a pot hole in 2003 and tried unsuccessfully to get the City to pay for the damage.

Shiroo allegedly also believed that Ito was accepting bribes and had sent a letter to television broadcaster Asahi complaining about Ito's recent money scandal and public works projects, in which Shiroo claimed the Nagasaki Mayor was being paid off.

It is important to note, in light of the Virginia Tech shooting, that Japan has very strict laws against possessing guns, laws which didn't prevent this Mayor from getting killed.

Indeed. All those who have been crying out for tighter gun control laws in the wake of the incident in Virginia can shove it.

In a land where guns are outlawed, only outlaws will have guns.

Well if this is'nt a conincidence, I just got done posting the sister thread
for this very story. What are the odds.


Anyways, it is an interesting case, a crime boss killing a mayor, two high
profile characters.

Hoepfully the city can elect a new mayor and things can transition
smoothly.

This article from this morning elaborates a little more on the gun law aspect in Japan, and points out that criminals are having no problem in evading the law and using these illegal weapons to commit numerous crimes with the weapons.

Japanese Mayor Killed by Gangster

Of the 53 gun attacks reported in 2006, two-thirds _ 36 _ were blamed on organized crime groups, the National Police Agency says.

Handguns are strictly banned for ordinary citizens in Japan, and only police officers and others _ such as shooting instructors _ with job-related reasons can own them. Hunting rifles are also strictly licensed and regulated.

Crime syndicates, however, have the money, numbers and international connections that enable them to smuggle foreign guns into Japan.

"The mayor of Nagasaki was killed by a gun that was illegally possessed," Chief Cabinet Secretary Yasuhisa Shiozaki said. "The fact that criminal organizations have stashed away guns through smuggling and illicit sales ... is also a cause."

[edit on 2007/4/18 by JacKatMtn]

A few things on this story:

1) This was the result of the mayor standing up to a shakedown. It`s not all that uncommon to get in traffic accidents with low level Yakuza, who then proceed to shake you down for cash to repair their cars. A co-worker mentioned to me a little while ago that he had originally claimed 600,000¥ in damages (roughly 6,000 USD) to repair a scratch... and as a settlement looked like it might be reached he upped it to 2,000,000 yen (about 20,000 USD, give or take).

I`ve heard about this type of thing here - happened to one of the old guys at the pub a couple of years back. Most people wind up paying it, because no one really wants the Yakuza hassling them.

2) The previous mayor was ALSO shot by Yakuza, for making a comment about Emperor Showa. He lived, and was on the news earlier talking about it.

Just to correct some things:

It is not easy for ANYONE to get a gun here. Period. This is why, in a nation of roughly 130,000,000 there were 53 gun crimes in 2006 (according to the link). There was a story last year about a high profile Yakuza boss who had boasted to his friends that he had shot more than 300 rounds of ammo. Lifetime. I`d shot more than that before I was 16.

Guns - the few legal ones that exist, in the hands of hunters - are kept at the police station under lock and key - as is ammo. From what I gather, the only legal source for ammunition is through the police. That being the case, if you DO have an illegal gun, you`re only halfway there. You still need ammo, which is bulky and shows up on x-rays and so forth.

Thus to say "criminals have no problems getting guns" is overstating things by a wide margin.


Finally, as to the official response: I don`t think there will be any, to be honest. There is a lot of rumored back and forth with the police, the Yakuza, and the Japanese Right Wing , and because of that I`m not going to hold my breath for any purge of the Yakuza. The murderer will get what passes for a trial in these parts, followed by life in an unheated jail cell somewhere. That will likely be the end of it. That`s just how it is.

Originally posted by vox2442
Guns - the few legal ones that exist, in the hands of hunters - are kept at the police station under lock and key - as is ammo. From what I gather, the only legal source for ammunition is through the police. That being the case, if you DO have an illegal gun, you`re only halfway there. You still need ammo, which is bulky and shows up on x-rays and so forth.

Thus to say "criminals have no problems getting guns" is overstating things by a wide margin.

Thanks for the local perspective, I was fortunate to live in Misawa at the AFB in the mid 70's and visited Hokkaido for the Sapporo snow festival in '76, what a wonderful time.

Back on the subject, your information is very helpful in understanding the Yakuza and their influence on the government there, it actually reminds me of the FBI under Hoover and the Mafia (who never existed according to JEH). Especially your point that you did not expect a crackdown on the organization. Thanks for the input.



[edit on 2007/4/18 by JacKatMtn]

Originally posted by apc
Indeed. All those who have been crying out for tighter gun control laws in the wake of the incident in Virginia can shove it.

In a land where guns are outlawed, only outlaws will have guns.

I completely agree with you however you reap what you sow. If the US wants lax gun regulations no problem, just stop lamenting about mass shootings. The numbers are there to show there is some type of problem but I sleep well at night knowing that its not my problem.

brill

Postscript:

I just popped down to the corner watering hole for a beer, and this was the main topic of conversation when I came in.

I`m actally quite stunned by what people were saying. The theory being thrown around is that this was actually a political hit, backed by the far-right (which the Yakuza is closely linked to). The hit was carried out because the smear campaign which they had attempted in the press did not work as planned. (please note, this is bar conversation. conspiracy theory only, nothing substantiated)

Background info: The (now deceased) mayor of Nagasaki was a very vocal opponent to nuclear weapons, as well as being very openly critical of constitutional reform with regard to the armed forces.

As for the people mulling all this over... pretty much your average people. ages 30-70, most with families and mundane jobs.

Hmmmmmmmmmm.

I`m going to dig around on this one as it unfolds. I`ll post here if anything interesting develops that isn`t picked up by the western media.

Originally posted by vox2442
Postscript:
I just popped down to the corner watering hole for a beer, and this was the main topic of conversation when I came in.

Kirin? or Sapporo!

Thanks for the update, I did read that it is election season and the mayor was campaigning, I guess he was expected to retain his seat so those who were in conflict with him decided to end his run for re-election.

I am intrigued. Keep us updated on the local pulse.

Actually, this bar is strictly Asahi. Not bad, but Kirin is my preference. I kind of miss living in countries where bars are expected to serve more than one kind of beer.

So, being that this gangster is a boss, will he actually serve any real time?
Or will he be sent to one of those rich people's prisons?
(I don't know if they have those in Japan.)

I think it's crazy though, that he just walked up to him and shot him.
Like something out of those old gangster movies.

Originally posted by vox2442
I`m actally quite stunned by what people were saying. The theory being thrown around is that this was actually a political hit, backed by the far-right (which the Yakuza is closely linked to).

Me too. I am STUNNED people don't believe the official version-- the gangster did it is because he believed the politician was on the take. Yeah, criminals really hate it when a cop, judge, or local politician is amenable to bribes.

Seriously, though, it is probably more significant that the victim seems to have been a peacenik. It reminds me of Japan in the 1930s, when peaceniks and leftists were violently eliminated from the political scene. And we know what happened after that.

[edit on 5-12-2009 by starviego]