Ippei Mizuhara, the embattled former Japanese-language translator of baseball star Shohei Ohtani, was not just gambling with the Dodgers superstar’s money.
The 39-year-old interpreter allegedly used a bank account involved in illegal wire transfers to purchase nearly 1,000 trading cards worth nearly $325,000 on eBay and Whatnot, the U.S. Attorney’s office of California’s Central District said in a statement.
An affidavit filed by IRS special agent Chris Seymour on Mizuhara revealed the cards were stashed in various briefcases and boxes in a vehicle used by Mizuhara. They included cards of Yogi Berra, Juan Soto and Ohtani himself.
Mizuhara is alleged to have falsely identified himself as Ohtani to get the transfers approved and “trick bank employees”. The card buying allegedly occurred over three months from January to March 2024 and were mailed to the Dodgers clubhouse under the alias “Jay Min”.
Mizuhara was officially charged on Thursday with bank fraud and unlawfully wiring more than $16 million from the Dodgers superstar’s bank account. The crimes carry a maximum sentence of 30 years in prison.
Ohtani told law enforcement last week he denied authorizing Mizuhara to transfer the funds. According to the charges, Mizuhara began gambling with an illegal sportsbook in September 2021 making approximately 19,000 bets, or nearly 25 a day, resulting in a net loss of more than $40 million. He is not alleged to have bet on baseball.
