NYT: Ohtani’s Former Interpreter Is Said to Be Negotiating a Guilty Plea

[Cooked Crack]

 

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Ippei Mizuhara, the former translator for Shohei Ohtani who was fired late last month amid allegations he stole millions of dollars from the baseball star’s bank account to cover debts that Mizuhara owed to an illegal bookmaker, is in negotiations to plead guilty to federal crimes in connection with the purported theft, according to three people briefed on the matter. 

 

The investigation, which began about three weeks ago after news of the alleged theft broke while Ohtani’s team, the Los Angeles Dodgers, was opening its season with two games in South Korea, is rapidly nearing a conclusion, according to the people, who spoke on the condition of anonymity because the inquiry is continuing. 

 

A guilty plea from Mizuhara before a federal judge — likely to include an admission of a range of facts related to any illegal conduct — could confirm the account that Ohtani gave to reporters two weeks ago, in which he said he had no knowledge of what happened to the money.

 

Those briefed on the matter claim that prosecutors have uncovered evidence that Mizuhara may have stolen more money from Ohtani than the $4.5 million he was initially accused of pilfering, the people said. In particular, 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.

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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. 

 

Little is known about where Mizuhara has been since the Dodgers fired him. Upon returning to California from South Korea, Mizuhara was stopped by law enforcement officials after getting off the plane, the three people said. It’s unclear what Mizuhara told the authorities in their interaction, but he was not arrested.

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Mizuhara, communicating with the agent, Nez Balelo, offered different versions of what had happened. First, Mizuhara said Ohtani had paid the debts of an unnamed teammate; then he said that he himself had racked up debts with the bookie and that Ohtani had bailed him out. The shifting stories alarmed executives in Major League Baseball, who worried that Ohtani might be tarnished by a connection to gambling. 

 

Once executives with the Dodgers and Major League Baseball learned of the wire transfers — but with Ohtani still in the dark — the Dodgers asked Mizuhara to address the team in the clubhouse after the first game in Seoul. He told the team that he had a gambling addiction and was deep in debt, and that Ohtani, his close friend for years, had paid the debts. 

 

At that point, Ohtani, who is not fluent in English but can understand the gist of some conversations, became suspicious. After Mizuhara’s clubhouse address, Ohtani told reporters, he confronted Mizuhara back at the team hotel. It was then, Ohtani said, that Mizuhara told him that he had stolen the money from his account. The Dodgers promptly fired him

https://www.nytimes.com/2024/04/10/business/shohei-ohtani-ippei-mizuhara-plea.html

Edited April 11 by Cooked Crack

[88Comrade2000]

My guess he’s got a nice payday coming after his prison term for taking the fall.

Edited April 11 by 88Comrade2000

[PleaseBlitz]

Holy crap I agree with @88Comrade2000on something. 

[tshile]

These are the type of conspiracy theories I latch onto. Because they’re inconsequential. 
 

I choose to believe he’s a fall guy for a gambling problem as well

 

[Spaceman Spiff]

Miizuhara is the fall guy.

 

That said, I really don't care if Ohtani has a gambling problem.

[ixcuincle]

it was obvious Ohtani was innocent from all the data and research I did. People wonder how an interpreter had so much access but they handle so much for players like helping get drivers licenses, et al

[PleaseBlitz]

Mizuhara should host ESPN Daily Wager. 

[tshile]

3 hours ago, ixcuincle said:

it was obvious Ohtani was innocent from all the data and research I did.

Reading this and juxtaposing it to what (little I know about) it takes to investigate fraud and money laundering on the scale of millions of dollars gave me a good chuckle 

[ixcuincle]

 

[abdcskins]

How did he gain access to Ohtani's funds? Until that question is answered I will assume Ohtani is guilty. 

 

Ohtahi must have people looking over his money. You get notifications for multiple transfers of $500,000. That type of stuff doesn't go unnoticed. 

[Dan T.]

The way Ohtani's story changed after it first broke was suspicious and leads me to believe we are not hearing the full scope of what went on.

[Spaceman Spiff]

On 4/11/2024 at 2:07 PM, Dan T. said:

The way Ohtani's story changed after it first broke was suspicious and leads me to believe we are not hearing the full scope of what went on.

Probably. But ultimately I do believe this will turn out to be a nothingburger. 

[Metalhead]

Ippei was impersonating Ohtani during calls to the bank in order to approve the transfers. The FBI has these calls. So far all US federal agencies (FBI, etc., hell even TMZ) have cleared Ohtani and officially identified him as Victim A in the report.

 

https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/24542204-usa-v-mizuhara-complaint

 

 

Edited April 12 by Metalhead
Added links and info.