Shohei Ohtani's Former Interpreter Ippei Mizuhara Charged with $16M Bank Fraud

The U.S. Attorney's Office said Mizuhara's crimes date back to 2018 when he accompanied Ohtani to open an account at an Arizona bank

• The U.S. Attorney's Office announced that Shohei Ohtani's former translator, Ippei Mizuhara, has been charged with bank fraud in a federal criminal complaint

• Mizuhara allegedly stole more than $16 million from the MLB star

• The former interpreter is expected to make his first court appearance in Los Angeles in "the near future"

Ippei Mizuhara, the former interpreter for Los Angeles Dodgers star Shohei Ohtani, is facing allegations of bank fraud after he was accused of "unlawfully transferring more than $16 million from a Major League Baseball player's bank account," the U.S. Attorney's Office (USAO) said on Thursday, April 11.

According to a press release issued by the USAO, Central District of California, Mizuhara, 39, is accused of transferring the funds from 29-year-old Ohtani's account "without the player's knowledge or permission" in an effort to "pay off his own substantial gambling debts incurred with an illegal bookmaking operation."

Per an affidavit filed with the complaint, the prosecutors alleged that Mizuhara wired the money from Ohtani's checking account from devices and IP addresses that traced back to the interpreter.

The attorney's office claimed that Mizuhara's crimes date back to 2018 when he accompanied Ohtani to an Arizona bank to translate while the Dodgers star opened an account that would hold his income from the MLB. However, Mizuhara allegedly misled Ohtani's U.S.-based financial advisers into believing the MLB player had denied them access to the account.

Related: Shohei Ohtani Says He 'Never Bet on Baseball or Any Other Sports' amid Link to Illegal Gambling

Mizuhara's gambling debts began to grow in 2021, according to the USAO. After "losing substantial amounts of money," he allegedly changed the contact information on Ohtani's account to his own phone number and an anonymous email address, as stated in the affidavit.

The affidavit filed with the complaint also alleged that Mizuhara falsely identified himself as Ohtani during a phone call with the bank to authorize the wire transfers, per the USAO. Mizuhara then allegedly used the account to purchase $325,000 worth of baseball cards and have them shipped to himself under the alias, "Jay Min."

Per the USAO, "there was no evidence to suggest that Ohtani was aware of, or involved in, Mizuhara's illegal gambling activity or payment of those debts." The office added that Mizuhara is scheduled to make his initial appearance at downtown Los Angeles' United States District Court "in the near future."

Bank fraud, meanwhile, is a felony offense with a "statutory maximum sentence of 30 years in federal prison," the USAO said.

Related: Dodgers Fire Shohei Ohtani's Interpreter After He's Reportedly Linked to Illegal Gambling

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On March 25, Ohtani read a prepared statement regarding the matter in front of the media, disputing any involvement in sports betting or gambling.

“I never bet on baseball or any other sports and have never asked someone to do so on my behalf and have never bet through a bookmaker,” Ohtani said through his interm interpreter, Will Ireton. "Until a couple of days ago, I didn’t know this was happening.”

Ohtani said the media contacted his representatives about his "potential involvement" in sports betting while he was in South Korea with the Dodgers last week. The player also said he did not know Mizuhara was in debt nor that his translator had a "gambling addiction" until he spoke with Mizuhara in a private meeting after the first game.

"Ippei told to the media and to the representatives that I, on behalf of a friend, paid off debt," Ohtani said Monday. "Upon further questioning, it was revealed that it was actually in fact Ippei who … was in debt and told my representatives that I was paying off those debts.” 

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