2024: A year of success and shock for the Dodgers’ superstar, Shohei Ohtani! While he ended up with 54 homers and 59 stolen bases in 2024, crossing the 50-50 threshold in the grandest way possible, the sudden news of his interpreter, Ippei Mizuhara, accused of stealing huge amounts of money, comes as a shock for Ohtani.

Although many people questioned Ohtani’s involvement in the incident, MLB insider Ken Rosenthal, on February 8, cleared the air by confirming that Shohei Ohtani was unknown to whatever happened. Ohtani was just a victim, who never knew that Mizuhara was transferring funds to pay his gambling bets and to an illegal bookmaker in South California. With the saga unfolding now, Mizuhara has been sentenced to five years in prison and needs to pay $18 million as compensation.

 MLB insider shares a major update on the gambling scandal

After pleading guilty in 2024, Shohei Ohtani’s interpreter, Ippei Mizuhara, has been sentenced to around five years in prison and needs to pay a hefty $18 million as restitution. But within the inner circle, rumors were coming up about Ohtani’s involvement in the matter, as people sensed something fishy going around. However, Rosenthal put an end to all these rumors, saying, “We have a government report that was pretty airtight about Ippei’s activities; we have no evidence. Literally, none that anything untoured has taken place. So, when you tell me Ken, you guys are doing a good job reporting something that happened here. I get it; that’s fine, but show me the evidence. Show me anywhere where there has been evidence.”

Ken Rosenthal is certain that Shohei Ohtani, the star player for the Los Angeles Dodgers, was unaware of what had happened and was only a victim. He further noted that he and others tried their best to determine whether anything could be connected to Ohtani but were unsuccessful. The government reports, audio tapes, and sentence reports were assessed, which did not indicate any sort of Ohtani’s involvement in the foul pay. Meanwhile, Mizuhara was found impersonating him by contacting the banks, monitoring the financials, and lying on tax records to hide his misdeeds, thus ultimately pleading guilty to the bank and tax fraud charges too. But that isn’t all!

Ippei Mizuhara’s misdeeds saddened Shohei Ohtani

Well, now as it seems, Ippei Mizuhara will have to pay around $17 million to Shohei Ohtani that he has stolen from him and also pay an extra $1 million to the US Internal Revenue Service (IRS) in tax. Mizuhara has been a close companion to Ohtani, and since he was fired last year for his involvement in gambling activities, theft, and tax fraud, Shohei Ohtani was heartbroken. Even after the final probe and verdict, Ohtani remained silent on this matter but expressed his sadness and being in shock after getting backstabbed by someone whom he trusted so much. So, what lies ahead for Mizuhara?

Well, Ippei Mizuhara has apologized for the crime and has accepted the consequences, agreeing to pay whatever the court stated. While Mizuhara has requested a 15-month sentence in jail, the Honourable Judge, John Holcomb, stated that he would be on probation for three years after his release from prison. Mizuhara would also be going through drug and alcohol testing, and he would have to participate in continued treatment to prevent the gambling addiction from forming again. He has been granted a 45-day surrender as of now, and on March 24, he will have to serve his sentence as decided by the Court.

What’s your take on it? Let us know in the comment below.