Police arrested a senior criminal gang member and two others on Sept. 24 for allegedly organizing baseball gambling involving former Yomiuri Giants players, shedding light on gang involvement in the highly publicized pro baseball scandal for the first time.

The Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) arrested Masatake Miyake, 42, a high-ranking member of a gang affiliated with the Yamaguchi-gumi, the country's largest criminal syndicate, and two other men on suspicion of running a gambling venue. The MPD's Organized Crime Control Section suspects that the illicit gambling served as a financial source for the gang and seeks to uncover all the details about the case.

Also arrested were Yoshimasa Sakai, 37, a welder from Shunan, Yamaguchi Prefecture, who was a member of a Yamaguchi-gumi-affiliated gang, and Katsuyoshi Fukuoka, 36, a temporary worker of no fixed address. The MPD's organized crime unit raided a Meguro Ward, Tokyo office of a gang to which Miyake belongs and other locations on Sept. 24.

The three men are specifically accused of organizing baseball gambling on a total of 25 pro baseball and high school baseball games held between March and October 2014 and taking commissions from seven customers. One of the customers was Satoshi Saito, 38, a former restaurant proprietor who is alleged to have organized baseball gambling in connection with the case. Saito is currently standing trial on charges of running a gambling venue.

Miyake, a resident of Tokyo's Setagaya Ward, has partially admitted to the allegations against him, telling police, "I didn't make all the arrangements myself." The other two men under arrest have reportedly admitted to the accusations, according to the MPD.

Investigators have thus far found that there are three ranks among bookmakers in the case -- called "major," "middle" and "minor." The MPD suspects that Miyake and others were middle-ranking bookmakers while Saito was a minor bookmaker. According to sources close to the investigation, Miyake is suspected to have provided Saito with information about the gambling while collecting some of the bets made by customers.

In April this year, Shoki Kasahara, 25, a pitcher with the Giants at the time of the alleged incident, was arrested for allegedly helping Saito organize baseball gambling. After questioning Kasahara and Saito, police apparently uncovered cash flows to gang members and decided to arrest Miyake and the other two men. Kasahara is currently on trial for aiding the running of a gambling venue and other charges. He has since been released by the Giants.

In August, Shigeo Matsunaga, 40, a graduate student from Aichi Prefecture, and another man were indicted for running a gambling venue and other charges in connection with the baseball gambling. The MPD is investigating whether Matsunaga's case also involved gang members.

Miyake denied his involvement in the baseball betting during a telephone interview with the Mainichi Shimbun in early September.

"I have absolutely no connection," he told the Mainichi after being asked if he was a bookmaker in the baseball gambling case involving the Giants players, though he admitted to hearing rumors about his possible involvement.

Asked if he had been questioned by police, he denied so, saying, "No, not at all. I'm a general member of the public. I'm not even an entertainer, so please leave me alone."