Interpreter steals $17m from baseball star, Ohtani

Shohei Ohtani’s former interpreter, Ippei Mizuhara, pleaded guilty on Tuesday in federal court to stealing nearly $17 million from the baseball star to pay off illegal gambling debts.

Mizuhara has admitted to one count of bank fraud, which carries a maximum 30-year prison sentence, and one count of filing a false tax return, which has a maximum three-year prison sentence, according to the US Attorney’s Office.

US District Judge John Holcomb has scheduled sentencing for October 25.

Mizuhara, 39, appeared at a hearing in federal court in Santa Ana, mobbed by photographers as he entered the courthouse, after reaching a deal with prosecutors as part of a broader federal sports gambling investigation.

Los Angeles Dodgers’ star Ohtani’s long-time friend took millions of dollars from the star’s bank account to finance an “insatiable appetite” for illegal sports gambling, prosecutors said.

Mizuhara surrendered to federal authorities in April 12 and was released on bond.

Japanese slugger and pitching star Ohtani, whose two-way skills had many comparing him to iconic Babe Ruth among Major League Baseball’s greatest legends, signed the richest contract in North American sports history to join the Dodgers last December, a deal worth $700 million.

After an initial April court appearance, Mizuhara’s lawyer said his client wished to apologize to “Ohtani, the Dodgers, and Major League Baseball” for his actions and wanted to “take responsibility” for what he had done.

The revelations surrounding Mizuhara erupted as the baseball season began in March, but prosecutors have stressed that Ohtani was an innocent victim of Mizuhara’s deception and that there was no evidence to suggest the Dodgers star was aware of illegal gambling or involved in such