An interpreter for Los Angeles Dodgers star Shohei Ohtani has agreed to plead guilty to criminal charges after secretly transferring about $17 million from the player’s account to pay off gambling debt.
Ippei Mizuhara incurred the debt through an illegal bookmaking operation, which Ohtani had no knowledge of, the US Justice Department said Wednesday. Mizuhara is expected to plead guilty to bank fraud and filing a false tax return in the coming weeks.
“He took advantage of his position of trust to take advantage of Mr. Ohtani and fuel a dangerous gambling habit,” Martin Estrada, the US Attorney for the Central District of California, said in a statement.
The plea agreement comes as Ohtani, a rare combination of pitcher…
