Major breakthrough in Ippei Mizuhara case should greatly benefit Shohei Ohtani

All eyes were on Shohei Ohtani and the Los Angeles Dodgers when the two-way phenom made his Dodgers debut in the Seoul Series to kick off the 2024 season. Fresh off of signing a $700 million contract, fans were excited to see what the two-time MVP could do surrounded by what looked like an All-Star team.

We expected Ohtani to be in the headlines, but we didn't expect it to happen for the reasons it did. A bombshell report was released stating that Ohtani's interpreter and best friend, Ippei Mizuhara, had stolen roughly $4.5 million from Ohtani's account to cover his gambling debts.

The Dodgers wound up firing Mizuhara once they were told by Ohtani's representatives that there was a massive theft, and Ohtani wound up releasing a long statement where he'd essentially declare his innocence and say Ippei was responsible for everything.

Fast forward just a couple of weeks later, and there is already a major breakthrough in the case. Tim Arango and Michael S. Schmidt of the New York Times reported late Wednesday that Mizuhara is in negotiations to plead guilty to federal crimes in connection with the purported theft of Ohtani's money, and that Ohtani himself has been interviewed by the feds as part of the investigation.

Latest update in Ippei Mizuhara case should greatly benefit Shohei Ohtani

What rubbed many the wrong way when Ohtani delivered his statement was that he refused to answer questions. He made it seem as if he was going to and then opted to just deliver the statement and walk away. If he refused to answer questions, what was he hiding?

Well, if Ohtani is speaking with the feds, he isn't hiding much of anything.

One question many had about this whole thing is how Mizuhara was able to access Ohtani's bank account and steal this kind of money without him knowing. Well, this article has the answer.

"The authorities think they have evidence that Mizuhara was able to change the settings on Ohtani’s bank account so Ohtani would not receive alerts and confirmations about transactions, the three people said."

That detail makes Ohtani's story far more believable. He allegedly didn't know that any of this was going on, thanks to settings changes from Mizuhara.

"By quickly pleading guilty, Mizuhara would increase his chances of receiving a more lenient sentence, as federal prosecutors and judges often look more favorably upon defendants who make the government’s job easier by expeditiously admitting their guilt."

Mizuhara appears to be pleading guilty this quickly to increase his chances of receiving a more lenient sentence. If he did the crime, this obviously makes the most sense. If Mizuhara didn't do the crime, he wouldn't be pleading guilty, especially this quickly.

The case reportedly "is rapidly nearing a conclusion", and all of these signs suggest that Ohtani is in the clear. There's still more to come, but so far, so good.