Ippei Mizuhara accused of wiring $4.5M of Shohei Ohtani's money for gambling, reports say
LOS ANGELES - Ippei Mizuhara, MLB interpreter and longtime sidekick to Shohei Ohtani, is at the center of a major gambling scandal.
According to a report from ESPN, Mizuhara is linked to an investigation where at least $4.5 million from Ohtani's bank account was allegedly wire transferred to a bookie for illegal gambling purposes. Mizuhara was fired by the Los Angeles Dodgers on Wednesday after reports from the Los Angeles Times – who first broke the Mizuhara news – and ESPN came out.
Mizuhara, who shared locker rooms with Ohtani going back to their days with the Nippon Ham Fighters in NPB, allegedly incurred gambling debts to a bookie. LA Times reported that the bookie tied to Mizuhara, Mathew Bowyer, is under federal investigation.
To add confusion to this story, Mizuhara reportedly told ESPN that Ohtani was aware of the interpreter's gambling debt and 2-time MVP wire transferred money from his bank account to help his longtime friend. Hours after making that statement, Mizuhara reportedly backtracked on what he previously told ESPN, saying the Dodger slugger had no knowledge of the interpreter's gambling debt and denied Ohtani transferring money.
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Ippei Mizuhara accused of using Ohtani
Ippei Mizuhara, MLB interpreter and longtime sidekick to Shohei Ohtani, is at the center of a major gambling scandal. According to a report from ESPN, Mizuhara is linked to an investigation where $4.5 million from Ohtani's bank account was allegedly wired to a bookie for illegal gambling purposes.
Ohtani's attorneys, on the other hand, say the 2-way star was a victim of a "massive theft." Ohtani's attorneys, however, did not explicitly out Mizuhara as the alleged thief.
Below is a statement released by Ohtani's attorneys:
"In the course of responding to recent media inquiries, we discovered that Shohei has been the victim of a massive theft and we are turning the matter over to the authorities."
Both LA Times and ESPN's reports say Ohtani does not gamble. According to ESPN, Mizuhara was allegedly betting on international soccer matches and other sports since 2021. Baseball was not included on the list of sporting events that Mizuhara had allegedly bet on, ESPN reports.
Bowyer's attorney told ESPN that Mizuhara's alleged bookie has never met or spoke with Ohtani.
According to ESPN, Mizuhara insists Ohtani had "zero involvement" in betting.
Below is a statement released by the Los Angeles Dodgers:
"The Dodgers are aware of media reports and are gathering information. The team can confirm that interpreter Ippei Mizuhara has been terminated. The team has no further comment at this time."