OT: Ohtani's Interpreter fired, used Ohtani's money to pay gambling debts.

[Chokic]

How in the actual **** do you think you can get away with skimming $4.5 MILLION!?

Be Ohtani's friend.

I think I tend to believe the friend's initial account but then Ohtani's advisors probably got wind of it and then pointed out how bad it would look for Ohtani that money was coming from Ohtani's personal account.

More like Ohtani was the one gambling here. And his team decided to make his friend/interpreter the fall guy.

That sounds way more logical than his friend having access to Ohtani's account in the first place, or his friend having a massive gambling debt in the millions with his income. Or the fact that the story changed half way through. Cap. Ohtani gambled. Decided to make his friend the fall guy because he would outwardly be banned from the game considering the league's stance.

MLB will also desperately try sweep this under the rug as fast as possible considering the cash cow Ohtani is. They need him more than he needs them.

Straight cap. This is a dude who bypassed large chunk of his contract upfront which most athletes wouldn't dare to do. Why would he risk his entire legacy for a tiny fraction of his contract by betting on games he couldve just recieved upfront? Use some logic.

[wco81]

The friend knew knew him from the time he was a teen or around 20?

But now Ohtani is sayin the friend stole from him.

That's serious theft. Big consequence for the guy.

Did he say he gave this interpreter his account number? Even if he did, bank's going to have to authenticate who requests the transfer and probably signatures. No way they wire money like that without Ohtani.

Unless for some unfathomable reason, Ohtani put the interpreter's name on the account, with signature privileges.

Or was this a Japanese bank, but I can't believe they'd be more lax than a US bank.

[CIN-C-STAR]

This looks like a total coverup:
https://www.espn.com/mlb/story/_/id/39817568/dodgers-shohei-ohtani-authorities-contacted-theft

So Ohtani reported this "massive theft" to the authorities, but now won't say which authorities or provide any evidence that he's done so.
My guess is that Ohtani and the interpreter continue to decline cooperating about the story unless the IRS and FBI investigation into that illegal bookie yields some criminal charges for the interpreter or Ohtani.
Otherwise, Ohtani can simply say he would rather move on than drag out the press with criminal charges, refuse to cooperate, and as long as him and his friend/interpreter have the same story or simply refuse to comment on it you really can't prove anything differently I suppose.

[wco81]

Everyone is talking about how no way the interpreter had power of attorney over bank accounts with millions or tens of millions in money.

He said the interpreter stole from him but apparently didn't report or make that claim to actual law enforcement.

[disoblige]

Everyone is talking about how no way the interpreter had power of attorney over bank accounts with millions or tens of millions in money.

He said the interpreter stole from him but apparently didn't report or make that claim to actual law enforcement.

Ohtani was betting then blame his interpreter seems more likely. Trying to save his face.

[CIN-C-STAR]

Everyone is talking about how no way the interpreter had power of attorney over bank accounts with millions or tens of millions in money.

He said the interpreter stole from him but apparently didn't report or make that claim to actual law enforcement.

Ohtani was betting then blame his interpreter seems more likely. Trying to save his face.

Not even save face, but avoid a lengthy suspension from MLB, the loss of endorsement dollars, and, potentially, criminal charges.
The interpreter probably makes out with a generational stack of yen in exchange. Win-win for both of them.

[disoblige]

Did he answer HOW he had access to his money? Ohtani was obviously gambling since HIS MONEY WENT TO THE BOOKMAKER. Goodluck transfering millions without a bank asking for verification before the transfer.

[Fairview4Life]

Did he answer HOW he had access to his money? Ohtani was obviously gambling since HIS MONEY WENT TO THE BOOKMAKER. Goodluck transfering millions without a bank asking for verification before the transfer.

other translators have already discussed this, a number of them have had access to players bank accounts to handle moving money and paying bills. And this guy was closer to Shohei than they were to their players.

[disoblige]

Did he answer HOW he had access to his money? Ohtani was obviously gambling since HIS MONEY WENT TO THE BOOKMAKER. Goodluck transfering millions without a bank asking for verification before the transfer.

other translators have already discussed this, a number of them have had access to players bank accounts to handle moving money and paying bills. And this guy was closer to Shohei than they were to their players.

Ok, I went and read the story. The interpreter didnt have access to the bank, "Ohtani logged onto his own computer and sent the wire transfers under Mizuhara's supervision in installments over several months last year". This is probably the 1st version of the story.

Mizuhara told ESPN he met Bowyer at a San Diego poker game in 2021 and started betting with him on credit later that year. Mizuhara estimated his losses mounted to more than $1 million by the end of 2022 and ballooned from there.

"I'm terrible [at gambling]. Never going to do it again. Never won any money," Mizuhara said. "I mean, I dug myself a hole and it kept on getting bigger, and it meant I had to bet bigger to get out of it and just kept on losing. It's like a snowball effect."

After Ohtani agreed to pay the debts, Mizuhara said on Tuesday, Ohtani logged onto his own computer and sent the wire transfers under Mizuhara's supervision in installments over several months last year. They added "loan" to the description field in the transactions.

"We had to add a description for the wire," Mizuhara said. "I think Matt [Bowyer] might have told me to just put 'loan.' You had to put something."

Asked why Ohtani didn't simply give him the money instead of paying Bowyer's associate directly, Mizuhara said Ohtani didn't trust him with the money.

"He didn't want me to gamble it away," Mizuhara said.

Mizuhara said he told Ohtani he would pay him back.

https://www.espn.com/mlb/story/_/id/39768770/dodgers-shohei-ohtani-interpreter-fired-theft

[Fairview4Life]

Did he answer HOW he had access to his money? Ohtani was obviously gambling since HIS MONEY WENT TO THE BOOKMAKER. Goodluck transfering millions without a bank asking for verification before the transfer.

other translators have already discussed this, a number of them have had access to players bank accounts to handle moving money and paying bills. And this guy was closer to Shohei than they were to their players.

Ok, I went and read the story. The interpreter didnt have access to the bank, "Ohtani logged onto his own computer and sent the wire transfers under Mizuhara's supervision in installments over several months last year".

Mizuhara told ESPN he met Bowyer at a San Diego poker game in 2021 and started betting with him on credit later that year. Mizuhara estimated his losses mounted to more than $1 million by the end of 2022 and ballooned from there.

"I'm terrible [at gambling]. Never going to do it again. Never won any money," Mizuhara said. "I mean, I dug myself a hole and it kept on getting bigger, and it meant I had to bet bigger to get out of it and just kept on losing. It's like a snowball effect."

After Ohtani agreed to pay the debts, Mizuhara said on Tuesday, Ohtani logged onto his own computer and sent the wire transfers under Mizuhara's supervision in installments over several months last year. They added "loan" to the description field in the transactions.

"We had to add a description for the wire," Mizuhara said. "I think Matt [Bowyer] might have told me to just put 'loan.' You had to put something."

Asked why Ohtani didn't simply give him the money instead of paying Bowyer's associate directly, Mizuhara said Ohtani didn't trust him with the money.

"He didn't want me to gamble it away," Mizuhara said.

Mizuhara said he told Ohtani he would pay him back.

https://www.espn.com/mlb/story/_/id/39768770/dodgers-shohei-ohtani-interpreter-fired-theft

This is not what Ohtani is saying happened. They are saying the guy lied about all of that. That was the original story where ESPN just interviewed the interpreter.

https://defector.com/shohei-ohtanis-presser-reveals-the-gaps-in-translation

Ohtani said in the presser that Mizuhara had never informed him about any investigation or media inquiry from ESPN, and lied to his representatives about him paying off a friend's gambling debt. It wasn't until the team meeting in the clubhouse after the first Global Series game, when Mizuhara admitted to the team that he had a gambling addiction and that a negative story was coming out, that Ohtani realized that something was amiss. After speaking to Mizuhara one-on-one in the team hotel, the interpreter confessed that he had a massive debt, and admitted he was sending money using Ohtani's account to the bookmaker. Ohtani then contacted his representatives, who learned that Mizuhara had been lying, before Ohtani reached out to the Dodgers and his lawyers, who released the statement alleging theft.

Other interpreters within baseball have suggested that it's not beyond the realm of possibility for Mizuhara to have taken Ohtani's money without his knowledge. According to a translation by Jeffrey J. Hall on Twitter, Katsunori Kojima, a former interpreter for the Mets and Giants, stated on Japanese television that he often handled financial transactions for players, including banking and car payments. Interpreter Daniel Kim also said that he carried player checkbooks for clubhouse dues. And that's without factoring in the additional layer of Ohtani's reported friendship with Mizuhara.

Ohtani's account aligns with the timeline provided by ESPN's Tisha Thompson this past Friday, clarifying what the term "Ohtani's camp" entails: ESPN had reached out to Ohtani's agent Nez Balelo about the wire transfers, and received a response from a "crisis-communications spokesman," who had just been hired in response to the inquiry. The spokesman then told ESPN that Balelo had reached out to Mizuhara, who "came clean," and that Ohtani had told Balelo that he had covered Mizuhara's debts. ("It's not clear whether the spokesman is saying Ohtani communicated with Balelo through Mizuhara," ESPN wrote.) ESPN, understanding that the spokesman worked for Ohtani, requested to hear the story from Mizuhara, which was why the original 90-minute Tuesday interview was arranged.

After Mizuhara addressed the team on Wednesday in the clubhouse, the spokesman reached out to ESPN to say not to publish the original story, stating that Mizuhara had been lying and that all communication between Balelo and Ohtani was mediated by Mizuhara. After the Dodgers fired Mizuhara hours later, ESPN reached Mizuhara by phone; he admitted to lying in the interview but did not answer when asked about stealing from Ohtani.

[disoblige]

This is not what Ohtani is saying happened. They are saying the guy lied about all of that. That was the original story where ESPN just interviewed the interpreter.

https://defector.com/shohei-ohtanis-presser-reveals-the-gaps-in-translation

I dont buy it. Knowing Japenese culture, the interpreter would rather go to jail than steal from Japan's biggest icon and his long time friend. Sending such a large sum through wire transfers from someone else’s account without their knowledge until several months later is nearly impossible.

[alebaba]

Everyone is talking about how no way the interpreter had power of attorney over bank accounts with millions or tens of millions in money.

He said the interpreter stole from him but apparently didn't report or make that claim to actual law enforcement.

Ohtani was betting then blame his interpreter seems more likely. Trying to save his face.

Not even save face, but avoid a lengthy suspension from MLB, the loss of endorsement dollars, and, potentially, criminal charges.
The interpreter probably makes out with a generational stack of yen in exchange. Win-win for both of them.

You do know it happen to a certain player in 2015, and there was only a 50k fine.. ppl here assuming stuff they have no clue about. lol

How in the actual **** do you think you can get away with skimming $4.5 MILLION!?

Be Ohtani's friend.

I think I tend to believe the friend's initial account but then Ohtani's advisors probably got wind of it and then pointed out how bad it would look for Ohtani that money was coming from Ohtani's personal account.

More like Ohtani was the one gambling here. And his team decided to make his friend/interpreter the fall guy.

That sounds way more logical than his friend having access to Ohtani's account in the first place, or his friend having a massive gambling debt in the millions with his income. Or the fact that the story changed half way through. Cap. Ohtani gambled. Decided to make his friend the fall guy because he would outwardly be banned from the game considering the league's stance.

MLB will also desperately try sweep this under the rug as fast as possible considering the cash cow Ohtani is. They need him more than he needs them.

Your theory lacks any logic. Why would Ippei need to be the fall guy when it would have resulted in just a slap on the wrist, even if Ohtani was the one betting? Now, Ippei risks prison time because of theft, and Ohtani is going to be in serious trouble if the feds find out he's making false accusations.

This is the same guy that deferred the majority of his money, but we somehow believe his a denegerate gambler? He also forfeited like 200 million dollars by coming 2 years early.

[Fairview4Life]

This is not what Ohtani is saying happened. They are saying the guy lied about all of that. That was the original story where ESPN just interviewed the interpreter.

https://defector.com/shohei-ohtanis-presser-reveals-the-gaps-in-translation

I dont buy it. Knowing Japenese culture, the interpreter would rather go to jail than steal from Japan's biggest icon and his long time friend. Sending such a large sum through wire transfers from someone else’s account without their knowledge until several months later is nearly impossible.

“Knowing Japanese culture” doesn’t mean anything when you’re talking about a degenerate gambler who’s 4.5 million in debt.

[disoblige]

This is not what Ohtani is saying happened. They are saying the guy lied about all of that. That was the original story where ESPN just interviewed the interpreter.

https://defector.com/shohei-ohtanis-presser-reveals-the-gaps-in-translation

I dont buy it. Knowing Japenese culture, the interpreter would rather go to jail than steal from Japan's biggest icon and his long time friend. Sending such a large sum through wire transfers from someone else’s account without their knowledge until several months later is nearly impossible.

“Knowing Japanese culture” doesn’t mean anything when you’re talking about a degenerate gambler who’s 4.5 million in debt.

I think either:
-Ohtani was genuinely covering his friend's gambling debts....his team walked it back when they realized he could be implicated in a federal crime.
or
-Ohtani was caught and needed a way out.

Gambling can be an addiction. It could be anyone not just degenerates.
https://www.reddit.com/r/torontoraptors/comments/c12612/a_friend_of_mine_saw_kawhi_gambling_in_vegas/

[wco81]

The other thing is, why would a bookie let some Japanese guy run up $4.5 million in debt?

Bookie must have known that he's from Ohtani's camp or that Ohtani's money would be covering the debt?

Interpreter didn't make a couple of huge bets to run up that much. He must have bet dozens of times over a long period?

Otherwise, I don't know if illegal gambling is like in the movies, that interpreter would have been visited a few times from people looking to collect.

But again, that kind of debt, it had to be understood that the interpreter was placing bets for Ohtani or that Ohtani was going to back the interpreter's bets.

[LAvision]

The other thing is, why would a bookie let some Japanese guy run up $4.5 million in debt?

Bookie must have known that he's from Ohtani's camp or that Ohtani's money would be covering the debt?

Interpreter didn't make a couple of huge bets to run up that much. He must have bet dozens of times over a long period?

Otherwise, I don't know if illegal gambling is like in the movies, that interpreter would have been visited a few times from people looking to collect.

But again, that kind of debt, it had to be understood that the interpreter was placing bets for Ohtani or that Ohtani was going to back the interpreter's bets.

Probably because
A. He knows he has the money to pay it
B. Since he’s famous and knows how much damage this story can do, he knows he can easily extort him or threaten him.

[wco81]

The other thing is, why would a bookie let some Japanese guy run up $4.5 million in debt?

Bookie must have known that he's from Ohtani's camp or that Ohtani's money would be covering the debt?

Interpreter didn't make a couple of huge bets to run up that much. He must have bet dozens of times over a long period?

Otherwise, I don't know if illegal gambling is like in the movies, that interpreter would have been visited a few times from people looking to collect.

But again, that kind of debt, it had to be understood that the interpreter was placing bets for Ohtani or that Ohtani was going to back the interpreter's bets.

Probably because
A. He knows he has the money to pay it
B. Since he’s famous and knows how much damage this story can do, he knows he can easily extort him or threaten him.

Yeah but the official story now is that Ohtani had nothing to do with the bets, didn't know about the money being taken out of his account because he didn't agree to pay the debt.

So really, to the bookie, he's just a random Japanese guy. He could tell the bookie that he's best buds with Ohtani but why would the bookie let him place what must have been dozens of good-sized bets and run up such a high balance?

Or even if he showed photos of him and Ohtani together, that doesn't prove that Ohtani is going to cover over $4 million in bets for this guy.

They're going to have to interview the bookie. If he says something like he spoke to Ohtani with his own interpreter and Ohtani said he'd cover his friend's bets or if he said Ohtani placed the bets, that will blow up.

[Fairview4Life]

The other thing is, why would a bookie let some Japanese guy run up $4.5 million in debt?

Bookie must have known that he's from Ohtani's camp or that Ohtani's money would be covering the debt?

Interpreter didn't make a couple of huge bets to run up that much. He must have bet dozens of times over a long period?

Otherwise, I don't know if illegal gambling is like in the movies, that interpreter would have been visited a few times from people looking to collect.

But again, that kind of debt, it had to be understood that the interpreter was placing bets for Ohtani or that Ohtani was going to back the interpreter's bets.

Probably because
A. He knows he has the money to pay it
B. Since he’s famous and knows how much damage this story can do, he knows he can easily extort him or threaten him.

Yeah but the official story now is that Ohtani had nothing to do with the bets, didn't know about the money being taken out of his account because he didn't agree to pay the debt.

So really, to the bookie, he's just a random Japanese guy. He could tell the bookie that he's best buds with Ohtani but why would the bookie let him place what must have been dozens of good-sized bets and run up such a high balance?

Or even if he showed photos of him and Ohtani together, that doesn't prove that Ohtani is going to cover over $4 million in bets for this guy.

They're going to have to interview the bookie. If he says something like he spoke to Ohtani with his own interpreter and Ohtani said he'd cover his friend's bets or if he said Ohtani placed the bets, that will blow up.

He isn’t a random Japanese guy. He was a trusted confidant of Shohei Ohtani and could conceivably funnel direct info to the bookie about any number of topics interesting to gamblers. Like if a day to day injured player was going to play, for example. Having a guy like that deep in debt isn’t just some rando off the street.

[wco81]

Good point about blackmailing him for injury status.

But are there a lot of bets being made on individual baseball games?

If you were renting a property and a guy claiming that he’s very good friends with Lebron James said he wanted to lease it and doesn’t have proof of income but has enough cash for a down payment and deposit, do you trust him and rent it to him?

Remember, he’s very good friends with Lebron!

[GreatWhiteStiff]

More like Ohtani was the one gambling here. And his team decided to make his friend/interpreter the fall guy.

That sounds way more logical than his friend having access to Ohtani's account in the first place, or his friend having a massive gambling addiction. Or the fact that the story changed half way through. Cap. Ohtani gambled. Decided to make his friend the fall guy because he would outwardly be banned from the game considering the league's stance.

MLB will also desperately try sweep this under the rug as fast as possible considering the cash cow Ohtani is.

The friend would have to agree to be the fall guy which he seems to have done if so. That does make the sudden about face from Ohtani accusing his friend of actually stealing the funds more dangerous though because it would give the friend more incentive to balk. None of the scenarios make perfect sense but this scenario would appear to be higher risk for Ohtani than just letting his friend claim responsibility for gambling.

So considering how much pull Ohtani has, I'm sure his friend will be taken care of and face no real consequences outside of being fired. If he really is the fall guy, Ohtani won't really go after him and will give him the best lawyers money can buy to ward off the feds. He's good.

The stolen money accusation is all show. To make Ohtani look like he had zero connection intentionally wiring money to illegal gambling agencies, unlike the initial story from HIS camp. But even the stolen money angle doesn't make sense. Because like some others have said, you don't just steal 4+ million dollars. That and the story change sequence is hilarious. How do you go from "I'm helping a friend pay off his gambling debt" to "he stole all the money, we had no idea"

So much of what's come out doesn't make any sense really. The only explanation I see is Ohtani did the gambling himself. Which would tie all these loose ends together.

So Ohtani is going to get an awesome lawyer for the guy who he stole funds from, to help him get off with the justice system. Ok, nothing to see here, seems totally legit. Super easy cover up, right? No holes detected.

Insert Harden dressed in the most ridiculous way possible jpeg.

I mean maybe? How the **** would I know.