Shohei Ohtani’s representatives have asked law enforcement to investigate allegations of “mass theft” of the superstar’s money. ESPN’s Tisha Thompson reported Thursday..
The law enforcement agencies contacted by Otani’s representatives are not specified in the report.
Earlier this week, the Dodgers announced that Ohtani was accused of sending $4.5 million to Matthew Bowyer, an alleged illegal bookmaker, to cover Mizuhara’s gambling debts, and Ohtani’s longtime translator and close friend Ippei Mizuhara. was fired.
On Wednesday, the IRS confirmed that Mr. Bowyer and Mr. Mizuara are currently under criminal investigation. According to the Associated Press.
The story is vague because the Ohtani camp changed the story during reporting from ESPN. and the Los Angeles Times.
Spokespeople for Ohtani and Mizuhara initially told ESPN that Ohtani sent the money to Bowyer on Mizuhara’s behalf.
A spokesperson later “disavowed” Mizuhara’s account, and Mizuhara told the store that Otani had no knowledge that the funds were being transferred.
The Los Angeles Times first reported Wednesday that Mizuhara had been charged with theft, followed shortly after by ESPN’s first report on the matter, which included a turnaround in Ohtani’s camp.
ESPN later reported that the confusion in how the original story was told was based on Ohtani’s camp’s reliance on a translator’s account of events.
According to reports, Ohtani noticed the theft during a team meeting in Seoul, South Korea, where the Dodgers opened the season with a back-to-back game against the Padres, where Mizuhara admitted he had a gambling problem.
Mizuhara said he bet on soccer, basketball and American football, but not baseball.
“I’ve never bet on baseball,” Mizuhara told ESPN. “That’s 100 percent. I knew that rule. … We’re going to have a meeting in spring training about it.”
“In the course of responding to recent media interviews, we discovered that Shohei was the victim of grand theft and have resolved the matter,” West Hollywood law firm Burke Buttler, representing Ohtani, said in a statement to the Post. I intend to do so.” Please report it to the authorities. ”
The statement did not name the specific perpetrator.
The Dodgers have named a new interpreter for Will Ireton Ohtani.
Ireton previously worked with Kenta Maeda from 2016 to 2019, remaining with the Dodgers after the Japanese pitcher was traded to the Twins.
Ohtani signed a 10-year contract worth $700 million with the Dodgers this offseason.
In an unprecedented move, Ohtani agreed to defer his $680 million contract bonus until after the end of his contract.
