Shohei Ohtani answers questions at a press conference between Shohei Ohtani and the Los Angeles Dodgers at Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles on December 14, 2023, with Ippei Mizuhara translating.
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former translator Los Angeles Dodgers superstar Shohei Ohtani Authorities said Wednesday they had agreed to plead guilty to illegally transferring $17 million from the baseball phenom’s account.
Ippei Mizuhara, 39, will plead guilty to multiple counts of bank fraud and falsifying tax returns, according to federal prosecutors in Southern California.
“The defendant’s deception and theft were on a massive scale,” said U.S. Attorney Martin Estrada. “He used his position of trust to exploit Mr. Ohtani to facilitate a dangerous gambling habit.”
Prosecutors said Mizuhara was an employee of Ohtani’s former team, the Los Angeles Angels, but Ohtani “paid him separately for additional work such as driving to meetings and interpreting for non-baseball-related events.”
Authorities said Suwon began placing bets with an illegal bookmaker in September 2021, resulting in losing bets and racking up huge bills.
“Unable to repay his gambling debts, Suwon hatched a scheme to defraud the bank and obtain funds from Ohtani’s account,” a statement from prosecutors said.
Prosecutors said Suwon used Ohtani’s password to gain access to the player’s bank account without the player’s knowledge or permission.
“Specifically, Suwon changed the registered email address and phone number on the account so that bank employees would call him, rather than Oh Gu, when trying to verify wire transfers from the account,” federal authorities said.
The translator even “impersonated Ohtani” and used the player’s “personally identifiable information to trick bank employees” into making wire transfers, authorities said. He allegedly called the bank around the clock, pretending to be Ohtani, officials said.
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