Chapter 4: Mizobe Appears to be Swimming in the Air: The First Makegumi Falls Dead

Abstract

Shindō Renmei’s killing spree begins with Ikuta Mizobe, the director of the Agricultural Cooperative in Bastos, a predominantly Japanese town. Murder squads called tokkōtai are trained to eliminate prominent figures in the Japanese community as Shindō Renmei seeks to consolidate its authority through fear and intimidation. The organization widely disseminates fake news, claiming among other things that Japan has occupied the West Coast and appointed Charles Lindbergh as interim president of the United States. They also insist Japanese naval vessels are headed to Brazil to repatriate the faithful. Meanwhile, the federal police intelligence agency called the Department of Social and Political Order (DOPS) and local police not only crackdown on militant groups, but also subject entire swaths of the Japanese Brazilian community to increased surveillance, mass arrests, and torture.