Shock recording emerges of Shohei Ohtani’s ex-interpreter ‘impersonating MLB star to make $200k transfer’
A four-minute audio recording allegedly captures Shohei Ohtani’s former interpreter Ippei Mizuhara impersonating the baseball star to secure a $200,000 wire transfer.
The astonishing recording referenced in a court filing is being used to back up prosecutors’ push for a sentence of almost five years for Mizuhara, who previously pleaded guilty to bank and tax fraud for stealing close to $17million from the LA Dodgers sensation.
Prosecutors are also seeking restitution of the near-$17m to Ohtani, as well as a penalty of more than $1m to the IRS.
Mizuhara is due to be sentenced February 6 after pleading guilty to one count of bank fraud and one count of subscribing to a false tax return.
In the recording, a man is heard identifying himself as Ohtani before saying that he tried and failed to log into online banking as it wasn’t available. He later confirms that the transaction he wishes to make is for $200,000.
When the woman from the bank asks him the reason for the transaction, he says it’s for a car loan.
Shohei Ohtani’s ex-interpreter (left) allegedly impersonates the MLB star in a shock recording
Ippei Mizuhara is facing almost five years in prison for stealing close to $17m from Ohtani
‘What is your relationship to the payee?’ she asks.
‘Um, he’s my friend,’ the man responds.
The recording was obtained from the bank, according to Assistant U.S. Attorney Jeff Mitchell. It’s unclear when it was made.
Towards the end of the call, the woman from the bank asks: ‘Will there be any future wires to your friend?’
‘Possibly,’ the man says. The recording was first obtained by The Athletic.
The legal filing says Mizuhara accessed Ohtani’s account beginning around November 2021 and changed its security protocols so he could impersonate him to authorize wire transfers.
By 2024, he had allegedly used that money to buy roughly $325,000 worth of baseball cards at online resellers eBay and Whatnot.
The disgraced interpreter pleaded guilty in June to spending millions from Ohtani’s Arizona bank account to cover his growing gambling bets and debts with an illegal bookmaker, as well as medical bills and the $325,000 worth of baseball cards.
Mizuhara was there for many of the Japanese player’s career highlights. He was his catcher during the Home Run Derby at the 2021 All-Star Game and was also present for his two American League MVP wins and record-shattering $700m, 10-year deal with the Dodgers. Off the field, he became Ohtani’s friend and confidant.
Mizuhara is due to be sentenced February 6 after pleading guilty to bank and tax fraud
He famously resigned from the LA Angels during the 2021 MLB lockout so he could keep speaking to Ohtani – before being rehired after a deal was struck – while their wives reportedly socialized.
But he gambled it all away, betting tens of millions of dollars that weren’t his to wager on international soccer, the NBA, the NFL and college football – though prosecutors said he never bet on baseball.
Mizuhara was fired in March 2024 after prosecutors reported Ohtani was a victim of theft following the investigation into an illegal bookmaking operation that led to his indictment.
In a court brief filed Thursday, Mizuhara said of dealing with his gambling addiction that led to $17m in losses: ‘I became almost dead inside. It was like I was just going through the motions.
‘Although I had always told myself that I would win it all back, as it became clear to me this was an impossibility, I think I just shut down. But that did not stop me from placing more bets.
‘I felt really antsy and anxious if I did not have an active bet. I felt pressure to stay in the game.’
