- The near confrontation occurred in November 2023 in a Los Angeles suburb.
- Mizuhara was accused of bank fraud and could spend up to 30 years in prison
- DailyMail.com provides the latest international sports news.
Shohei Ohtani was almost approached by his former translator’s illegal bookie while walking his dog in Newport Beach, California, to ask the Los Angeles Dodgers star for money.
Ohtani’s former Japanese translator, Ippei Mizuhara, was fired last month after his illegal gambling habits came to light. It was also revealed in the evidence file that Mizuhara stole $16 million from Ohtani to cover his gambling losses.
The near-confrontation would have taken place in November 2023, before Ohtani switched baseball teams from California and played for the Los Angeles Angels.
The name of the suspected illegal bookie is Matthew Bowyer and the evidence presented against him and Mizuhara has completely cleared Ohtani of any wrongdoing.
Ohtani’s dog is a Kooikerhondje, which has ties to Jack Russell terriers and Beagles, named Dekopin, which in Japanese translates to hitting someone’s forehead.
Mizuhara worked with Ohtani for more than a decade, including his time in Major League Baseball.
Ohtani poses for a photo with his dog after winning the American League MVP award
Ippei Mizuhara, 39, made a series of unauthorized transfers from Ohtani’s checking account between November 2021 and January of this year, the Justice Department said.
Ohtani is one of baseball’s biggest stars who joined the Dodgers last December in a record $700 million deal.
Combined bets of more than $180 million came from Mizuhara, and the former Ohtani performer lost about $41 million, according to prosecutors.
Mizuhara placed 19,000 bets with values ranging from $10 to $160,000, averaging around $12,800 per bet.
In 2018, Mizuhara accompanied Ohtani, who spoke no English at the time, to a bank in Arizona to open an account.
What federal investigators uncovered shows an abuse of power by Mizuhara beyond his duties as an interpreter.
Paint Mizuhara as Ohtani’s manager and handler.
“Ohtani’s salary from playing professional baseball was deposited into this account and he never gave Mizuhara control of it or any of his other financial accounts,” according to an affidavit in the case.
“Mizuhara allegedly told Ohtani’s US-based financial professionals, none of whom spoke Japanese, that Ohtani denied them access to the account,” the department added.
Dodgers star Shohei Ohtani’s former translator has been charged with bank fraud
Mizuhara is accused of stealing more than $16 million from the Japanese baseball star
Ohtani’s acquittal was considered murky before Wednesday, due to the sums of money Mizuhara was believed to have gambled. Prosecutors stated several times that one of baseball’s greatest was just a victim of the situation.
The amount of money Mizuhara spent on gambling was also revealed, which was much larger than previously believed.
There was no evidence that Mizuhara bet on baseball despite the large sum invested in the game.
If convicted of the bank fraud charges brought by prosecutors, Mizuhara could spend up to 30 years in prison.