A former member of Shohei Ohtani‘s team has been accused of stealing millions from him.
The Los Angeles Dodgers pitcher‘s ex-interpreter Ippei Mizuhara was federally charged with bank fraud April 11 for allegedly robbing the athlete of $16 million, according to an affidavit obtained by E! News.
Mizuhara—who began working with Ohtani in 2013 to teach him English—gained access to his client’s money when the MLB player, 29, moved to the U.S. from his native Japan in 2018. At the time, the interpreter helped him set up a bank account, ultimately becoming Ohtani’s de facto manager, prosecutors alleged, per NBC News, during an April 11 news conference.
But the interpreter’s “insatiable appetite” for illegal sports gambling soon got in the way, leading Mizuhara, 39, to shut out Ohtani’s agent, financial advisor and accountant from the 29-year-old’s online finances and wire over $16 million dollars in unauthorized funds from the player’s account to his own bank between November 2021 and January 2024, per the affidavit.
