Trust me: saying ya-koo-za to a yakuza is not a good idea. The official term for yakuza is boryokudan, or ‘violent groups’, but Japanese gangsters themselves prefer another term: gokudo, or someone on ...

These astonishing photographs give an unprecedented glimpse inside the world of the Yakuza, the Japanese organised crime syndicates, known for their brutality, tattoos and strict code of honour ...