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1.00some people are wondering how deep it goes https://huddleup.substack.com/p/shohei-ohtanis-gambling-story-is
The story starts with Mathew Bowyer. The FBI is currently investigating Bowyer for running an illegal bookmaking scheme in Southern California. ESPN and the LA Times were then alerted to Ohtani’s name being included in some of the files, including two $500,000 payments directly from Ohtani’s bank account to Bowyer.
When Trish Thompson, ESPN’s investigative reporter, started asking around, Shohei Ohtani’s representatives said that it was actually Ohtani’s long-time interpreter, Ippei Mizuhara, betting on sports and Ohtani had transferred the money to cover his losses.
Ohtani’s representatives then offered up Mizuhara for a 90-minute interview on Tuesday night. According to ESPN, Mizuhara was extremely open, saying he started placing bets on credit with Bowyer after meeting him at a San Diego poker game in 2021. His losses reached $1 million by the end of 2022 and then ballooned from there.
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This is where things get interesting. After hearing that Mizuhara told ESPN that Ohtani had sent the wire transfer himself, Ohtani’s representatives walked back their previous statement that Ohtani had covered his friend’s losses. Instead, they now claim that Ohtani was the victim of “massive theft” at the hands of his interpreter.