Ippei Mizuhara, a former interpreter for Los Angeles Dodgers star Shohei Ohtani, is in U.S. federal prison, prison authorities said Monday, after being sentenced for stealing nearly $17 million from the baseball player.
Ippei Mizuhara. (Kyodo) ==Kyodo
His incarceration in Pennsylvania comes after Mizuhara, 40, was sentenced to a prison term of four years and nine months and was ordered to surrender himself to authorities by Monday, according to his attorney.
Mizuhara is being held in a low-security prison in Allenwood, according to the Federal Bureau of Prisons. His defense has said he is likely to be deported to Japan after completing his sentence, as he is not an American citizen.
According to court documents, Mizuhara misappropriated $16.59 million from one of Ohtani’s bank accounts from November 2021 through March 2024 to pay a bookmaker to cover gambling debts.
Mizuhara also stole around $380,000 to buy baseball cards to resell them and to pay for his dental work. Additionally, he submitted a false tax return for 2022, knowing the income he had received that year far exceeded the amount reported, the documents said.
The incident stunned the baseball world and Ohtani’s fans after it emerged through media reports in March last year.
Mizuhara came to the United States in 2018 to work as Ohtani’s interpreter when the two-way star began his MLB career with the Los Angeles Angels.
Mizuhara initially falsely told U.S. sports network ESPN that Ohtani had sent him the money to pay off his gambling debts.
A federal district court in California sentenced Mizuhara in February after he pleaded guilty to the charges. He was initially ordered to report to prison in March, but was twice granted a deadline extension at his request.
Related coverage:
Ex-Ohtani interpreter gets nearly 5 yrs in prison over bank fraud
Prosecutors seek 4 yrs in prison for Ohtani’s ex-interpreter Mizuhara
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