Shohei Ohtani’s Translator Charged With Stealing $16 Million to Pay Gambling Debts

Shohei Ohtani’s longtime Japanese-langauge interpreter has been charged with stealing more than $16 million from the Los Angeles Dodgers two-way star to pay off his personal gambling debts, the Department of Justice announced in a release on Thursday.

Ippei Mizuhara, 39, was charged with bank fraud by federal authorities in the Central District of California. He faces up to 30 years in prison if convicted.

“From November 2021 to January 2024, Mizuhara wired more than $16 million in unauthorized transfers from a checking account [belonging] to an MLB player identified in the affidavit as ‘Victim A,’ who in fact is MLB star Shohei Ohtani,” the DOJ said in a release. “The transfers from this bank account allegedly were made from devices and IP addresses associated with Mizuhara, who served as Ohtani’s translator and de facto manager.”

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