Shohei Ohtani goes all-in on theft story in latest gambling scandal development

The long arm of the law is now involved in the Shohei Ohtani interpreter theft/gambling scandal. At least, more so than it was before.

On Thursday, ESPN's Tisha Thompson reported that Ohtani's representatives "contacted law enforcement authorities and asked them to investigate a 'massive theft' of money from the player." This whole thing emerged because federal authorities were already investigating the allegedly illegal bookmaking operation where Mizuhara was making his bets.

This was inevitable. The moment Ohtani's lawyers released a statement on Wednesday publicly alleging the theft, they were always going to have to follow through with authorities. There would have been even more questions than there already are if they didn't.

Still, this also makes the whole saga even more serious, especially given the uncertainty around Ohtani and Mizuhara's conflicting stories.

Law enforcement involvement could lend clarity to Shohei Ohtani scandal

It would have been a relatively straightforward case of "trusted employee steals money from wealthy employer" if not for the way the story broke. We see those all the time in sports. It was shocking to initially learn that Ohtani's long-time interpreter and friend had stolen from him, but not unbelievable.

But things got more complicated (and harder to trust) because an Ohtani representative initially backed up Mizuhara's story to ESPN, saying that the baseball star had agreed to pay off his massive gambling debt. That story was apparently shared by Mizuhara in front of the Dodgers clubhouse with high-level Dodgers executives reportedly present.

Later that day, there was a sharp turn in the narrative. Ohtani's camp disavowed Mizuhara. Mizuhara recanted his initial story to ESPN. Ohtani's involvement was scrubbed and the allegation of a "massive theft" was made.

Now Mizuhara could be facing serious criminal charges.

There is still much to learn about this whole saga. And law enforcement should certainly be interested in figuring out exactly why the story changed so quickly. But it will all take time to sort out.