hohei Ohtani (left) and Ippei Mizuhara will be investigated by MLB regarding the matter surrounding the Dodgers star.
LOS ANGELES.- Major League Baseball (MLB) has opened a formal investigation into the matter surrounding Los Angeles Dodgers superstar Shohei Ohtani and his former interpreter Ippei Mizuhara, the baseball league announced.
MLB is expected to request interviews with all parties, including Ohtani and Mizuhara, a source told ESPN, although officials will have no way to force Mizuhara to cooperate since he no longer works for baseball.
Ohtani also has the right to refuse to cooperate as a member of the MLB Players Association. Ohtani could also invoke his right, under one interpretation of arbitration precedent, to refuse to cooperate because of a criminal investigation already underway. Traditionally, MLB has argued that it can only invoke such an exception if the player is a target, which Ohtani is not believed to be.
“Major League Baseball has been gathering information since we learned of the allegations involving Shohei Ohtani and Ippei Mizuhari through the media,” Major League Baseball said in a statement. “Earlier today, our Department of Investigation (DOI) began its formal investigation process into the matter.”
The announcement came two days after Mizuhara was fired, as reporters pressed for questions about at least $4.5 million in wire transfers, sent from Ohtani’s bank account, to a gambling operation that is under federal investigation.
In the span of two days, Ohtani’s handlers went from saying that the slugger had paid off Mizuhara’s gambling debts to his lawyers announcing that he had been the victim of a “massive robbery.”
It is unclear if any authorities are investigating the alleged theft. Ohtani’s representatives said Thursday that they had officially presented the allegation to authorities, but did not say to which authorities. Multiple sources told ESPN that neither the California Bureau of Investigation nor the FBI were working on the case.
Spokespeople for the Los Angeles Police Department and the Los Angeles and Orange county district attorney’s offices said they were not investigating and indicated it was most likely a federal matter. The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Central District of California declined to comment.
IRS INVESTIGATES TOO
He Internal Revenue Service (IRS) confirmed that he former interpreter of Shohei Ohtani es focus of one criminal investigationand the lawyer for his alleged bookie said that the former employee of Los Angeles Dodgers apostaba in parties of international soccer y not baseball.
The IRS confirmed Thursday that the ex ntérprete Ippei Mizuhara y Mathew Bowyerhe alleged illegal bookmakerson investigated by agency office in Los Angeles. IRS spokesman Scott Villiard said he could not provide further details.
Former performer Ippei Mizuhara and Mathew Bowyer, alleged illegal bookmaker, are investigated by the IRS. AP Photo/Ashley Landis
Mizuhara, 39, was fired Wednesday following reports by ESPN and the Los Angeles Times about his alleged ties to an illegal gambler and having accumulated debts exceeding $1 million. The news broke hours after Ohtani’s anticipated debut with the Dodgers in South Korea, where Mizuhara accompanied the star who signed a $700 million dollar contract last December.
“While responding to recent press requests, we discovered that Shohei has been the victim of a massive theft and we turned the matter over to authorities,” law firm Berk Brettler LLP said Wednesday in a statement.
Sports betting is illegal in California and is partially allowed in 38 states and the District of Columbia.
Diane Bass, Bowyer’s attorney, told The Associated Press that Mizuhara used Bowyer to bet on international soccer, but not baseball.
“Mr. Bowyer never had any contact with Shohei Ohtani, in person, by phone or of any kind,” Bass said Thursday. “The only person he kept in contact with was Ippei.”
Mizuhara is a familiar face to baseball fans as Ohtani’s constant companion, in charge of translating his statements to the press and in other appearances since Ohtani arrived in the United States in 2017. He was even Ohtani’s catcher in the Derby. Home runs in the 2021 All-Star Game.
When Ohtani left the Los Angeles Angels to sign his mega contract with the Dodgers, the club hired Mizahura.
The Dodgers indicated in a statement that they “were aware of the press reports and were gathering information.”
“The team can confirm that interpreter Ippei Mizuhara has been fired,” the statement added. “The team will not provide further comment at this time.”
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2024-03-24 03:53:09
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