The Los Angeles Dodgers have fired their interpreter for Shohei Ohtani following questions regarding at least $4.5 million from the player’s bank account being wired to a gambling operation.
Ippei Mizuhara, Ohtani’s longtime friend and interpreter, was let go by the team on Wednesday afternoon resulting from reporters asking questions about the wire transfers.
ESPN had contact with a spokesperson for the player who initially claimed that Ohtani transferred the money to cover Mizuhara’s gambling debt. The translator was made to speak to ESPN on Tuesday night, telling his story in a 90-minute interview. However, while the outlet was preparing to publish the story on Wednesday, the spokesman disavowed Mizuhara’s account and said the slugger’s attorneys would issue a statement.
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“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,” a statement from Berk Brettler LLP reads.
ESPN notes that the spokesperson has declined to answer any questions while the statement didn’t specify the person believed to have undertaken said theft.
Mizuhara was asked whether he was the one being accused after the statement was released but said he was not allowed to comment on the matter.
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The stunning turn of events was triggered by federal investigators’ probe into the operation of Southern California bookie Matthew Bowyer. According to several sources, the wire transfer payments out of Ohtani’s account were sent to one of Bowyer’s associates. ESPN was told by multiple sources, including Mizuhara, that the player does not gamble and that the money covered the interpreter’s losses.
Shohei Ohtani’s Name Appeared On Two Payments
According to The Worldwide Leader in Sports, Ohtani’s name has appeared on two $500,000 payments from September and October of 2023.
Sports betting is legal in most states but that isn’t the case for California.
Sources told ESPN that Bowyer and Mizuhara dealt directly with each other, with the latter placing wagers on international soccer matches and other sports but never betting on baseball.
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