Baseball star Shohei Ohtani's ex-translator pleads guilty to stealing $17M from athlete

Japanese baseball great Shohei Ohtani's former interpreter pleaded guilty on Tuesday to stealing nearly $17 million from the athlete's bank account to pay off his own gambling debts, according to U.S. prosecutors.

Ippei Mizuhara, the former translator and de facto manager of the Los Angeles Dodgers' power-hitting pitcher, pleaded guilty in a deal that had been announced last month, U.S. attorney Martin Estrada said. Mizuhara's lawyer declined to comment.

"Based on the extent of the conduct here, the sentence would likely be one that calls for incarceration," Estrada said outside of the courthouse. “Mr. Ohtani is considered a victim in this case. It is clear from the evidence that he did not profit from this, did not benefit from this. He in fact was harmed substantially by this.”

A 33-page record of the deal, in which Mizuhara, 39, agreed to plead guilty to one count of felony bank fraud and one count of subscribing to a false tax return, was previously filed in U.S. District Court in Los Angeles. Sentencing is expected to take place on Oct. 25.

For more info, please go to https://globalnews.ca/news/10483561/ippei-mizuhara-pleads-guilty-shohei-ohtani-ex-interpreter/

Subscribe to Global News Channel HERE: http://bit.ly/20fcXDc
Like Global News on Facebook HERE: http://bit.ly/255GMJQ
Follow Global News on X HERE: http://bit.ly/1Toz8mt
Follow Global News on Instagram HERE: https://bit.ly/2QZaZIB

#GlobalNews #ShoheiOhtani #Baseball