 Daimon of Kudo-kai | |
| Territory | Kitakyushu, Fukuoka, Japan |
|---|---|
| Membership (est.) | 200[1] |
| Criminal activities | Protection racketeering, drug trafficking, unlawful involvement in public works and other legitimate businesses, among others |
| Allies | The Yonsha-kai (Dojin-kai, Taishu-kai, Kumamoto-kai) |
The Kudo-kai (工藤會, Kudō-kai) is a yakuza group headquartered in Kitakyushu, Fukuoka on the Kyushu island of Japan,[2] with an estimated 200 active members.[1] The Kudo-kai has been a purely independent syndicate ever since its foundation, and has caused numerous conflicts with the Yamaguchi-gumi (at least on eight separate occasions in 2000; at least one Yamaguchi-affiliate boss was shot to death by the Kudo-kai in 2000[3]).
The Kudo-kai is the largest yakuza group in the Kitakyushu area,[4] and like other yakuza groups based in the northern Kyushu region, it is noted for its extremely militant stance, by using the likes of machine guns and hand grenades in their activities.[5] The Kudo-kai is regarded as the best example of Kyushu yakuza who strongly oppose the police, get angry easily, and "fight with pride".[6]
The National Police Agency's official report refers to the Kudo-kai as a "particularly nefarious group".[7] One notable incident happened in March 1988, while feuding with a Chinese mafia syndicate attempting to enter the Kitakyushu area, the Kudo-kai attacked the Consulate General Fukuoka office of the People's Republic of China, which had nothing to do with the mafia, with shotguns and a dump truck.
The Kudo-kai is a member of an anti-Yamaguchi fraternal federation, the Yonsha-kai, with three other northern-Kyushu based organizations, the Taishu-kai, Dojin-kai, and Kumamoto-kai.[8] The Yonsha-kai had been known as the "Sansha-kai" until 2005 when the Kumamoto-kai joined it. The Kudo-kai is the principal member of this federation.
- ^ a b "Organized Crime Situation 2023" (PDF). National Police Agency. p. 26. Archived from the original (PDF) on 30 March 2024. Retrieved 30 March 2024.
- ^ "EDITORIAL: Drive out yakuza groups", April 17, 2010, Asahi Shimbun
- ^ "2001 Police White Paper Chapter 4 : Furtherance of Boryokudan Comprehensive Measures", 2001, National Police Agency (in Japanese)
- ^ "Japan's mobsters get a big-screen reality check with policeman's film", July 22, 2006, The Independent
- ^ "About the Anti-Kudo-kai Top Convention in the Kitakyushu Area" Archived 2011-09-27 at the Wayback Machine, May 19, 2010, Fukuoka Prefecture (in Japanese)
- ^ "Fukuoka yakuza groups tackle police pressure in all-out war", 4 May 2010, The Tokyo Reporter, from Friday May 14, p.22-23 (in Japanese)
- ^ "Boryokudan Situation in 2010", April 2011, National Police Agency (in Japanese)
- ^ The Sixth Yamaguchi-gumi Complete Databook 2008 Edition : "The funeral of the Fourth Kudo-kai Honorary Adviser Hideo Mizoshita" (p.192–197), 1 February 2009, Mediax, ISBN 978-4-86201-358-3 (in Japanese)