If you were curious to know what exactly happened to Los Angeles Dodgers star Shohei Ohtani’s money after it was allegedly stolen by his former interpreter, Ippei Mizuhara, a new report from ESPN’s Tisha Thompson shed new light on the situation.
The man at the center of the alleged illegal gambling ring who received Ohtani’s money was Mathew Bowyer, who has been under investigation by federal authorities since last year. Ohtani was only drawn into the scandal when authorities noticed his banking information among payments to Bowyer.
Mizuhara allegedly funneled weekly payments of $500,000 from Ohtani’s bank account to an associate of Bowyer’s to cover his illegal gambling losses. ESPN reports that the associate would deposit the money into accounts at Resorts World, a Las Vegas casino opening in 2021, and Pechanga Resort Casino in Temecula, California.
Bowyer and the associate would allegedly convert the money into gambling chips, play with it, and cash out if they won. Bowyer allegedly lost $7.9 million at Resorts World from June 2022 to October 2023, during which time he received money from Mizuhara.
Apparently, this is all part of a much larger trend in the gambling world in which illegal gambling houses in Southern California are using Las Vegas casinos to launder money. Twelve people were reportedly charged and convicted, while two Las Vegas casinos agreed to pay fines.
There’s even a tangential connection to LeBron James. Los Angeles Lakers star Maverick Carter’s friend and business partner reportedly admitted late last year that he bet on NBA games through an illegal bookie. ESPN reports that bookie Wayne Nix pleaded guilty to operating an illegal gambling business and filing a false tax return. NBA Hall of Famer Scottie Pippen and former MLB star Yasiel Puig also reportedly placed bets through Nix.
In Bowyer’s case, he allegedly boasted more than 600 gamblers and was known as a whale in Las Vegas, with a reputation for bringing in between $250,000 and $1 million two or three times a month.
Where is the Shohei Ohtani scandal currently?
As far as Ohtani, the Dodgers and MLB are concerned, Ippei Mizuhara’s situation is in the rearview mirror.
Mizuhara turned himself in on a federal bank fraud charge earlier this month and is currently free on $25,000 bond. His lawyer released a statement shortly after indicating Mizuhara’s desire to reach a deal with prosecutors rather than go to trial, in which he would face up to 30 years in prison:
Today Mr. Mizuhara voluntarily surrendered, made his first appearance and was released on bail as agreed with the government. He continues to cooperate with the legal process and hopes to be able to reach an agreement with the government to resolve this case as quickly as possible so that he can take responsibility.
He wishes to apologize to Mr. Ohtani, the Dodgers, Major League Baseball and his family. As noted in court, he is also eager to seek treatment for gambling. We have no further comment at this time, but Mr. Mizuhara will provide further comment as the legal process progresses.
So far, no reports of a deal have materialized, but that doesn’t mean negotiations aren’t happening.
Meanwhile, MLB released a statement acknowledging that authorities view Ohtani as a victim, leaving them little to investigate.
This is as good an outcome as Ohtani and his people could have hoped for after his name appeared on an illegal bookie’s ledger, but it remains a very sad situation. It became clear that Mizuhara was very close to Ohtani and suffered from massive gambling problems.
Now, Ohtani is just focusing on baseball again, while Mizuhara is sorting out an unenviable legal situation.
