With yakuza connections, a propensity to “forget” important details after a few drinks, and his own personal mahjong parlor, LDP lawmaker Shin Kanemaru was the epitome of the crooked political fixer. When Sagawa Kyubin, a growing provincial delivery company with no connections to the old zaibatsu and little political leverage in Tokyo, wanted to make the step up to the big league in the late ‘80s, Kanemaru was the go-to guy. Distributing billions through late-night mahjong games with other politicians, he was able to set the scene for Sagawa’s meteoric growth, while also choosing a few prime ministers along the way, before scandal downed him in 1992.

by Chip Boles