Shokokuji Ryuya (相国寺竜也 - Ryuya Shokokuji in Western format) is a recurrent lead character in the adaptations of Agatha Christie stories by TV Asahi which are set in modern day Japan. He is an police officer in the Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department and serves in the elite First Criminal Investigation Division of the Criminal Investigation Bureau. The distinctive red "s1s" lapel pin with a gold border, worn only by members of the First Criminal Division, can be seen on his coat. Shokokuji holds the rank of 警部 (keibu) which translates as inspector but is equivalent to a chief inspector.
Shokokuji is considered eccentric and unorthodox. He is almost always seen dressed completely in black, wearing a black turtle-neck, compared to most of his police colleagues who are invariably in lounge suits. He also wears a distinctive black wide brimmed hat which he twirls in his hand when thinking. His manner in speaking to colleagues and in questioning witnesses is direct and brusque, and not aligned with the norms of courtesy and indirectness common in Japanese culture.
As a member of the elite "s1s", Shokokuji and his subordinates are typically assigned to investigate the most serious crimes. His team travels around Japan assisting local police in their investigations. In the TV Asahi adaptations there is a mix of police procedural work and psychology and deductive reasoning. The local police typically comprise a large team who perform the procedural work such as sweeping the crime scene, checking the backgrounds of witnesses and suspects and so on. Shokokuji typically focuses on deductive reasoning and careful study of evidence. Each episode features instances of his deductive reasoning leading to breakthroughs.
In Daijoyuu Satsujin Jiken (The Mirror Crack'd from Side to Side) the amount of Calmol used to kill the victim amounted to 16 tablets. Shoukokuji reasons that This is a large amount which does not dissolve easily and would take a long time during which it would be visible. It could not be done on the spur of the moment, therefore it was a carefully preplanned and premeditated act on the part of the killer. In this episode where there is a be of play on assured and unusual names, Shokokuji links two people with unusual names and discovers that they were adopted children of Iridori Madoka (Marina Gregg).
In Yokoku Satsujin (A Murder is Announced), Shokokuji notices that the torch which Kurumai Kyuzo (Rudi Scherz) was using had the screw threads on the cover filed down. When Kyuzo dropped the torch after being shot, the cover would pop off, ejecting the batteries, causing the light to go out. Kyuzo would not have done it himself. Therefore someone had set Kyuzo up and had planned to kill him. His death was no accident, as the other investigators assumed.
Shokokuji Ryuya is portrayed by Sawamura Ikki.