Ippei Mizuhara, the former interpreter for Los Angeles Dodgers superstar Shohei Ohtani, is in some big trouble. He was accused of and is reportedly preparing to plead guilty to stealing money from the two-time MVP in order to cover his gambling debts, and it turns out, it's worse than we all thought.
It was reported on Thursday that Mizuhara transferred more than $16 million from Ohtani's bank account, far more than the $4.5 million that was initially reported.
One question that everyone was wondering was did Mizuhara bet on baseball. That'd make an already bad situation even worse. It turns out, according to an affidavit, Mizuhara appears to be in the clear there.
On Page 16 of federal criminal complaint of Shohei Ohtani's now-former translator Ippei Mizuhara, an FBI agent writes in an affidavit that "records do not reflect any bets on baseball games." pic.twitter.com/nneIck3k8T
— A.J. Perez (@byajperez) April 11, 2024
Ippei Mizuhara appears to have not bet on baseball after all
While Mizuhara did confess to betting, he emphatically denied betting on baseball. If Ohtani was at all involved, that could've been a very serious situation.
Ippei Mizuhara told ESPN he bet on international soccer, the NBA, the NFL and college football, saying, “I never bet on baseball. That’s 100 percent. I knew that rule.”
It turns out that Mizuhara, a man who told countless lies to a player who trusted him, was telling the truth in this circumstance. He did not bet on baseball as an FBI agent wrote in an affidavit that "records do not reflect any bets on baseball games."
Mizuhara not betting on baseball, unlike Pete Rose, shows that games Ohtani has appeared in have not been impacted by betting, which is definitely important.
While this is a positive development, Mizuhara is still in huge trouble. He was charged with bank fraud on Thursday, which carries a maximum sentence of 30 years in prison.