The U.S. Department of Justice has filed criminal charges against Ippei Mizuhara, a former interpreter for Los Angeles Dodgers player Shohei Ohtani, on charges of bank fraud. He is said to have stolen more than $16 million (approximately 2.45 billion yen) from Otani to pay off debts he had accumulated through gambling.
The charges were announced on the 11th in federal court in Los Angeles. The U.S. Department of Justice said at a press conference that day that Mizuhara had admitted to the theft. The ministry said Mizuhara stole funds from Otani over his own gambling, but noted that the gambling did not appear to be about baseball.
At the press conference, officials said there was no evidence that Ohtani authorized the transfers from his account.
“Ohtani is considered a victim,” said Los Angeles U.S. Attorney Martin Estrada.
Mizuhara is expected to appear in court within the next few days. If convicted, he could face up to 30 years in prison, prosecutor Estrada said. He added, however, that the sentence could be significantly shorter based on federal guidelines on sentencing.
Shohei Otani and Ippei Mizuhara
Photographer: Rob Leiter/MLB Photos/Getty Images
Mr. Mizuhara had recently become the subject of multiple investigations after it was reported that he had ties to a Southern California bookmaker that is being investigated by federal authorities. Sports network ESPN previously reported that the Dodgers fired Mizuhara after he allegedly transferred at least $4.5 million from Ohtani’s bank account to a bookmaker.
The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) confirmed in March that Mizuhara and the alleged bookmaker Matthew Boyer were under criminal investigation. Major League Baseball (MLB) is also investigating Mizuhara.
Original title:Ohtani Interpreter Charged With Fraud Over Theft From Star (1)(excerpt)
(Add and update information)