Ohtani Interpreter Charged With Fraud Over Theft From Star (3)

A former interpreter for Los Angeles Dodgers baseball player Shohei Ohtani was charged with bank fraud and accused of stealing more than $16 million from the athlete to make thousands of illegal sports bets.

Ippei Mizuhara, a close friend of the Dodgers superstar, admitted to stealing from him by highjacking his account and impersonating him with bank staff to feed a “voracious” gambling habit, US Justice Department and Internal Revenue Service officials said at a press conference Thursday. They spoke as a criminal complaint was unsealed in federal court in California.

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