SANTA ANA, Calif. (AP) — The former interpreter for baseball star Shohei Ohtani was sentenced Thursday to four years and nine months in prison and ordered to pay nearly $17 million to the Los Angeles Dodgers player after he stole a similar amount from Ohtani’s bank account to cover his sports gambling debts.
Ippei Mizhuara was supposed to bridge the language gap between the Japanese pitcher and his English-speaking teammates and fans. Instead, Mizuhara exploited the language barrier to isolate Ohtani and profit from his proximity to the two-way player ’s power.
At Mizuhara’s sentencing hearing in Santa Ana, the court ordered him to pay $18 million in restitution, with nearly $17 million going to Ohtani and the remainder…
