The Fourth Yamaken-gumi (四代目山健組, Yondaime Yamaken-gumi) is a yakuza gang based in Kobe, Japan. It was the largest affiliate, followed by the Nagoya-based Kodo-kai, of the largest known yakuza syndicate in Japan, the Yamaguchi-gumi until 2015.[1]
Yoshinori Watanabe was kumicho (Godfather) of the Yamaken-gumi from 1982 to 1989 before becoming kumicho of the Yamaguchi-gumi.[2] Watanabe retired from that post in July 2005, but the Yamaken-gumi remains largely loyal to him. Many of its members were upset that the sixth Yamaguchi don was not chosen from their ranks, instead, the Nagoya-based Kenichi Shinoda was chosen.
In 2015, the Yamaken-gumi, along with several other organisations, withdrew from the Yamaguchi-gumi and formed the Kobe Yamaguchi-gumi. From 2015 to 2020, it was under the umbrella of the Kobe Yamaguchi-gumi.[3] In August 2020, Koji Nakata, the head of the Yamaken-gumi, declared that the Yamaken-gumi had become independent of the Kobe Yamaguchi-gumi.[4]
On 16 September 2021, the Yamaguchi-gumi announced that it will be welcoming back Yamaken-gumi members who had disunited from them in 2015. As a result, the Yamagken-gumi once again became the umbrella organisation of the Yamaguchi-gumi.[5][6]
Before the split, the Yamaken-gumi was estimated to have between 3,000 and 7,000 members. Following the split the number dropped to around 800.[7]
Leadership
1st kumicho (1961-1982): Kenichi Yamamoto (山本 健一) who was a eldest son (若頭, wakagashira) of the Third Yamaguchi-gumi. He was a former member of Yasuhara-kai (安原会).
2nd kumicho (1982-1989): Yoshinori Watanabe (渡辺 芳則) who was wakagashira of the Fourth Yamaguchi-gumi. He was 1st kaicho (会長) of the Kenryu-kai (健竜会), and would later become kumicho of the Fifth Yamaguchi-gumi.
3rd kumicho (1989-2005): Kaneyoshi Kuwata (桑田 兼吉) who is a eldest son's assistant (若頭補佐, wakagashira-hosa) of the Fifth Yamaguchi-gumi. He was kaicho of the Second Kenryu-kai.
4th kumicho (2005-2018): Kunio Inoue (井上 邦雄) who was a kambu (幹部) of the Sixth Yamaguchi-gumi. He was kaicho of the Fourth Kenryu-kai. He is an adopted son of Kuwata.
5th kumicho (2018-): Koji Nakata (中田 浩二) who is a kambu (幹部) of the Sixth Yamaguchi-gumi. He was kaicho of the Fifth Kenryu-kai.
^"Yakuza group Yamaguchi-gumi welcomes back gang that split". The Asahi Shimbun. 17 September 2021. Retrieved 21 December 2021. According to sources, Yamaguchi-gumi executives notified members on Sept. 16 that they were welcoming back returning Yamaken-gumi members. The same day, executives of Yamaken-gumi met to confirm they were rejoining.
