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Tisha Thompson, ESPN
Representatives for Los Angeles Dodgers superstar Shohei Ohtani have contacted law enforcement and asked them to investigate a “grand theft” of money from the player, a source with direct knowledge told ESPN on Thursday. Ta.
The official did not say which agency had been contacted.
Major League Baseball officials told ESPN on Thursday that the league had not been contacted by federal authorities. The person said MLB's next step is to gather facts, but that could take time given the ongoing federal investigation.
On Wednesday, an attorney for the Dodgers pitcher and designated hitter said after reporters questioned Ohtani's spokesperson about why a $4.5 million wire transfer from Ohtani's bank account was sent to a bookkeeping business, the player said, He said he was the victim of a grand theft.
The alleged theft arose after Ohtani's publicist initially told ESPN that Ohtani transferred the funds to cover gambling debts from his former interpreter and friend Ippei Mizuhara.
Mizuhara told ESPN as much on Tuesday night, going into great detail about his story, including saying Ohtani was present and the two transferred $500,000 each in several different settings. explained. But as ESPN prepared to publish the story Wednesday, a spokesperson denied Mizuhara's explanation.
In a subsequent interview with Mizuhara, Mizuhara told ESPN that he was not being truthful and knew nothing about Ohtani's gambling activities, debts or efforts to pay them back.
On Thursday, a source close to Ohtani explained the change in storyline. As Ohtani's representatives tried to figure out what happened, they initially relied solely on Mizuhara, who continued to act as Ohtani's translator.
After the season opener in South Korea on Wednesday, Dodgers officials held a meeting in the clubhouse to inform the players that negative stories would come later that day and apologized, saying Mizuhara had a gambling addiction. According to sources, it was then that Ohtani realized for the first time what was happening and began asking questions.
Asked Wednesday if he had intentionally misinterpreted something, Mizuhara told ESPN, “No, I never did that.”
Asked by ESPN on Wednesday afternoon whether he had been charged with theft, Mizuhara said he was told he could not comment, but declined to say who. He did not answer subsequent questions about whether he had received any money without Otani's knowledge.
This week's developments come as federal investigators investigate the operations of Southern California bookmaker Matthew Bowyer. The wire transfers were sent from Ohtani's account to Bowyer associates, according to multiple sources and bank data reviewed by ESPN.
Multiple sources, including Mizuhara, told ESPN that Ohtani did not gamble and that the fund covered Mizuhara's losses.
ESPN was looking into banking information that listed Ohtani's name on two $500,000 payments sent in September and October.
Sports betting is legal in about 40 states, but remains illegal in California. Government-regulated sportsbooks require you to pay your bets upfront, while illegal bookmakers accept bets on credit.
Sources close to the gambling operation told ESPN that Bowyer works directly with Mizuhara, who has been betting on international soccer games and other sports (but not baseball) since 2021. It is said that Officials said Bowyer knew the names of the wire transfers but chose not to ask questions as long as the payments were made. But officials said Mr. Bowyer allowed people to believe Ohtani was a customer to promote business.
“Mr. Bowyer has never met or spoken to Shohei Ohtani,” Bowyer's attorney, Diane Bass, told ESPN. She refused to answer other questions.
In addition to their working relationship, Mizuhara and Otani are also friends. Since Otani came to the United States in 2018, Mr. Mizuhara has accompanied the two-way player as an interpreter in dugouts, locker rooms, player lounges, field trips, media sites, etc., and Mr. Mizuhara is well known among baseball fans. expensive.
He serves as an interpreter for Ohtani along with the team's managers and coaches, and reviews Ohtani's scouting reports during games. The two are rarely separated. Ohtani's teammates once described the two as having a “brotherly love” that goes beyond friendship, as Mizuhara runs the pitcher's errands, carries a water bottle, and is always present.
Mizuhara signed with the Los Angeles Angels when Ohtani was playing there, and signed with the Dodgers this offseason. Mizuhara confirmed to ESPN that he is paid between $300,000 and $500,000 annually. He was released by the Dodgers on Wednesday.
Mizuhara told ESPN on Tuesday that he bets on international soccer, the NBA, NFL and college football.
“I've never bet on baseball,” Mizuhara said. “That's 100 percent. I knew that rule. … We'll have a meeting about it in spring training.”
MLB players and employees are allowed to bet on sports other than baseball, but they are not allowed to use illegal bookmakers or offshore websites. The league's rulebook states that betting with illegal bookmakers is subject to punishment at the commissioner's discretion.
