Two Yakuza members walking past a crime scene in New York City, October 2001
The Kasen-gumi was a Japanese-American yakuza syndicate which was based in New York City, New York. The gang began to move into New York City in 1998, and its leader Kazuki Kasen was bent on making the gang the most powerful crime syndicate in New York. The Yakuza stole a tank from the US Army, but the gang was weakened by their leader's assassination by the Leone crime family, and it had lost its territories in The Bronx, the New Jersey city of Elizabeth, Staten Island, and Central Park by 2000. Asuka Kasen became the new boss, and the gang fought against the rival Colombian Vialpando Cartel from 2000 to 2001, leading to the deaths of both Asuka Kasen and her brother Kenji Kasen. However, the gang war between the two gangs continued for quite some time, leaving any people dead on the streets.