31.   Stocks plunged yesterday after prosecutors raided Yamaichi Securities Co. as part of an investigation into payoffs to a corporate racketeer.

32.   The brokerage house was found to have illegally compensated a company run by relatives of a sokaiya corporate racketeer.

33.   The Finance Ministry banned Yamaichi from underwriting government bonds for an unspecified period on suspicion it made illegal payoffs to Ryuichi Koike, a corporate racketeer.

34.   The new competitor comes as the traditional leaders in the domestic securities industry are reeling from payoff scandals to a corporate racketeer.

35.   The Ministry of Finance is investigating whether DKB falsified documents related to loans made to a corporate racketeer, the Nihon Keizai newspaper said Saturday.

36.   The securities commission also is investigating Nomura Securities Co. for allegations the brokerage made payoffs to a corporate racketeer.

37.   These are the latest installments in a saga of payoffs to corporate racketeers that traders say may riddle the industry.

38.   Three Nomura Securities Co. executives were arrested by Tokyo prosecutors for making payoffs to a corporate racketeer, the Asahi wire service reported.

39.   To be sure, the foreigners are cashing in on a widening scandal involving Japanese brokerages paying off a corporate racketeer.

40.   Tokyo prosecutors raided the offices of Yamaichi Securities Co. seeking evidence of payoffs to corporate racketeers.