[/floatr]Yomiuri: Bosozoku gang members aging, NPA study finds
Adults made up over half the membership of bosozoku car and motorcycle gangs in 2006, according to the National Police Agency, the first time the figure has exceeded 50 percent since the agency started researching the issue in 1999. The NPA, which also analyzed changes in the ages of bosozoku gang members, said that young people may be being deterred by the rigid hierarchical structure of the groups and a growing sense that it is not "cool" to be a member of such a group. The proportion of adults is therefore rising as young members who remain in the groups reach adulthood, the agency said. The number of bosozoku groups across the country was 956 at the end of 2005, and had decreased to 847 at the end of 2006. Total membership of the groups decreased to 13,677 from 15,086 in the same period.
