It has just been reported that Ippei Mizuhara, the former interpreter for Los Angeles Dodgers star Shohei Ohtani, has pleaded guilty to one count of bank fraud and one count of tax fraud for reportedly stealing money from Ohtani’s bank account to pay off his large gambling debts.
Mizuhara appeared in a Santa Ana, California, court yesterday to plead guilty to the pending federal charges. Wearing a suit jacket and a white shirt, the 39-year-old bilingual swindler told a judge he used funds from an Ohtani bank account to help clear himself of a major gambling debt he had accumulated.
Although the news of the plea has just been released, Mizuhara and prosecutors reached a plea agreement in this case last month.
Mizuhara’s possible sentence is up to 33 years in federal prison. His sentencing hearing is scheduled for late October.
The Dodgers released a statement regarding the court proceedings, which can be seen below.
