Ippei Mizuhara, the friend and former interpreter of Los Angeles Dodgers star Shohei Ohtani, has pleaded guilty to stealing millions from Ohtani to cover gambling debts, the U.S. Department of Justice reported.
Mizuhara, 39, faces up to 33 years in prison after pleading guilty to one count of bank fraud (30 years) and one count of subscribing to a false tax return (3) years.
The Japanese interpreter is expected to enter a plea deal.
“The extent of this defendant’s deception and theft is massive,” U.S. Attorney Martin Estrada said. “He took advantage of his position of trust to take advantage of Mr. Ohtani and fuel a dangerous gambling habit. My office is committed to vindicating victims throughout our community and ensuring that wrongdoers face justice.”
The plea agreement states that the ruse began in Arizona in 2018 after Mizuhara helped Ohtani – who doesn’t speak English – set up a bank account. In September 2021, Mizuhara started gambling on sporting events with an illegal bookmaker and quickly rang up a series of debts that he could not pay. However, Mizuhara possessed the log-in information from the bank account he had helped set up for Ohtani.
“Unable to pay his gambling debts, Mizuhara orchestrated a scheme to deceive and cheat the bank to fraudulently obtain money from the account,” the DOJ states.
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Author: Dillon B
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