Ippei Mizuhara, the translator accused of stealing millions of dollars from Los Angeles Dodgers star Shohei Ohtani to cover gambling debts, is negotiating to plead guilty, The New York Times reported Wednesday.
Citing “three people briefed on the matter,” the Times also wrote that prosecutors found evidence that Mizuhara may have pilfered more than the $4.5 million initially reported, and changed the settings on Ohtani’s bank account so the player would not receive transaction alerts.
Mizuhara would be more likely to receive a lenient sentence with an early guilty plea.
His lawyer, Michael Freedman, told HuffPost he had no comment on Thursday.
Ohtani has said he had no previous knowledge of what happened to the money.
“Ippei has been stealing money from my account and has told lies,” the Japanese star said last month after Mizuhara had told reporters that Ohtani willingly paid his debts. Ohtani and his lawyers disavowed Mizuhara’s claims.
The two-time MVP, perhaps baseball’s most dominant player because he’s an accomplished hitter and pitcher, also denied any personal participation in gambling. He signed a 10-year, $700 million contract with the Dodgers in December, but surgery on his elbow will keep him from pitching this season.
“I never bet on baseball or any other sports or never have asked somebody to do it on my behalf, and I have never gone through a bookmaker to bet on sports and was never asked to assist betting payment for anyone else,” he said.
Mizuhara was Ohtani’s longtime translator until the Dodgers fired him last month.
The Internal Revenue Service confirmed it had launched a criminal investigation that also involved a Southern California bookie named Mathew Bowyer.
The investigation is “rapidly nearing a conclusion,” the Times reported.
MLB is also conducting its own official probe.