The Dodgers fired Shohei Ohtani’s interpreter, Ippei Mizuhara, in March 2024 after Ohtani’s lawyers said he had been the victim of “massive theft.” That was the initial allegation, not the final finding: Mizuhara later pleaded guilty to bank fraud and filing a false tax return, MLB said Ohtani was a victim of fraud and closed its investigation, and a federal judge sentenced Mizuhara in February 2025.
Why was Shohei Ohtani’s interpreter fired?
The Los Angeles Dodgers terminated Ippei Mizuhara in March 2024 after media inquiries about money transferred from Ohtani’s bank account and a statement from Ohtani’s attorneys. The lawyers said Ohtani was the victim of “massive theft” and that they were referring the matter to authorities. MLB’s contemporaneous account reported the lawyers’ allegation that Mizuhara had used millions of Ohtani’s dollars to place bets with an allegedly illegal bookmaker. At the time of the firing, these were allegations; the later court case established a more specific account.
The law firm Berk Brettler LLP said: “In the course of responding to recent media inquiries, we discovered that Shohei has been the victim of a massive theft and we are turning the matter over to the authorities.” MLB reported the statement in March 2024.
What did “massive theft” mean?
The phrase was Ohtani’s lawyers’ description of the alleged taking of money from his account. Federal prosecutors later described nearly $17 million in unauthorized transfers from Ohtani’s account. The official restitution order specified $16,975,010 payable to Ohtani; that figure is the amount ordered repaid, while “nearly $17 million” describes the transfers in the Justice Department’s account.
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According to the U.S. Department of Justice, Mizuhara used money to pay gambling debts connected to an illegal bookmaking operation. The Associated Press also reported purchases of baseball cards and dental expenses. Those reported purchases were uses of misappropriated funds, not evidence that Ohtani took part in gambling.
Did Ippei Mizuhara plead guilty?
Yes. On June 4, 2024, Mizuhara pleaded guilty in federal court to one count of bank fraud and one count of subscribing to a false tax return. At the plea hearing, as quoted by MLB, he told the judge: “I worked for victim A and had access to his bank account and had fallen into major gambling debt.” The case resolved through his guilty plea rather than a contested trial.
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Was Shohei Ohtani accused of gambling?
The case’s official findings identified Ohtani as the victim, not as a participant in Mizuhara’s gambling. In April 2024, U.S. Attorney Martin Estrada said, “I want to emphasize this point: Mr. Ohtani is considered a victim in this case.” After Mizuhara’s plea, MLB said it considered Ohtani a victim of fraud and had closed its investigation.
MLB’s statement after the plea was: “Based on the thoroughness of the federal investigation that was made public, the information MLB collected, and the criminal proceeding being resolved without being contested, MLB considers Shohei Ohtani a victim of fraud and this matter has been closed.” MLB published the statement and plea details in June 2024.
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What sentence did Mizuhara receive?
On February 6, 2025, a federal judge sentenced Mizuhara to 57 months in prison. The judge also ordered restitution of $16,975,010 to Ohtani and $1,149,400 to the IRS. The Justice Department said the tax-return count involved a false return. These sentence and restitution figures were reported by the U.S. Department of Justice when the sentence was announced.
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