Shohei Ohtani's interpreter Ippei Mizuhara charged with stealing $16 million from MLB star

Federal authorities charged the former interpreter for Los Angeles Dodgers star Shohei Ohtani with bank fraud for allegedly stealing more than $16 million from the two-time AL MVP's account.

During a press conference, the government laid out its case against Ippei Mizuhara, saying he transferred millions of dollars to an alleged illegal sports book to pay off debts, using Othani's baseball salary to fund his scheme.

“The bets do not appear to have been made on the sport of baseball," U.S. Attorney Martin Estrada said.

Estrada said Mizuhara's bets were made between 2021 and 2024. Mizuhara set up the account for Ohtani and didn't have access to Ohtani's financial advisors.

The $16 million in unauthorized transfers were from a checking account belonging to an MLB player identified in an affidavit as “Victim A,” which is Ohtani.

Mizuhara also used the same account to buy 1,000 baseball cards for $325,000 via eBay and Whatnot between January 2024 to March 2024 and mailed them to the Dodgers clubhouse under an alias.

Authorities say they interviewed Ohtani last week, and he denied knowing anything about the wire transfers after providing his cellphone to law enforcement. Officials said there was no evidence to suggest that Ohtani was involved or aware of Mizuhara's illegal activities.

The 39-year-old Mizuhara faces 30 years in prison and a maximum fine of $1 million if sentenced under federal guidelines.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Shohei Ohtani interpreter Ippei Mizuhara charged with stealing $16M