GV EXTERIOR Sanjo Station (in Kyoto) PAN TO street; several shots nightclubs and bars in street -- the haunts of yakuza; several shots police searching interior of Bel-Ami nightclub after assault on Taoka; GV EXTERIOR hostesses hustled out of bar into police wagon; GV street PAN TO Bel-Ami club; GV hospital; hospital sign; yakuza waiting outside; police guarding hospital; visitors being searched by police; INTERIOR sign "Kazuo Taoka" PAN TO room 560 with notice "no admittance"; GV hospital corridor with armed police guard; several shots of Taoka's Cadillac in hospital garage; (IN KOBE NOW) Yamaguchi-gumi HQ being guarded by police; sign "Yamaguchi-gumi"; yakuza with cars in Yamaguchi-gumi HQ; more shots police guard outside HQ.




Initials



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Background: Kazuo Taoka is the boss of Japan's biggest gang of yakuza or hoodlums, the Yamaguchi-gumi, and has been for many years. Recently, however, dur to his age, he has lost some of his old authority. He was recently sitting in the Bel-Ami nightclub in Kyoto when an unidentified gunman fired several shots at him. Taoka was hit in the neck, but the wound was not considered serious, thought he had to go to hospital. The gunman is believed to be a member of one of the other gumi, and police are afraid that revenge killings by the Yamaguchi-gumi could lead to a full scale gang war, Chicago-style. Japan's yakuza (traditionally right wing and with a samurai-like philosophy and code of conduct) control most of the country's prostitutes, dope trade, protection rackets and traffic in illegal weapons.

About 9.00 o'clock at night at the night club "Belumi" of Higashiyama the boss whose name is ??? of yamaguchi-gumi was aimed to shoot his back by a pistol a bullet shot the night past of his neck. According to the hospital, it is the two-week wound. Another bullet also shot two people who were sitting close to him. The man who shot him looked 30 years old, they said, and apparently it was well-planned incident by his opponent "???". Now, police is paying attention to the ??? by yamaguchi-gumi ???, where there is the ??? of yamaguchi-gumi, the members are getting together at 19 offices of "Kumi".

On the other hand, at ??? Hospital where ??? is in, from 11:30 a.m. in the morning, the members are coming to see him. Yamaguchi-gumi is the biggest gangster-groups which has 2,000 members. The police thinks that yamaguchi-gumi is facing the danger of unit.