Ippei Mizuhara, the former interpreter of Shohei Ohtani, has been formally charged with bank fraud for allegedly stealing more than $16 million from the Los Angeles Dodgers star.
During a news conference Thursday, U.S. Attorney Martin Estrada said that Mizuhara made unauthorized transfers from Ohtani's bank account between November 2021 and January 2024 to pay off his gambling debts with an illegal bookmaker.
The bank fraud charge is a felony offense that carries a maximum fine of up to $1 million and/or up to 30 years in federal prison, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office of the Central District of California.