JAPANESE baseball great Shohei Ohtani鈥檚 former interpreter pleaded guilty on Tuesday to stealing nearly $17 million from the athlete鈥檚 bank account to pay off his own gambling debts, according to US prosecutors.
Ippei Mizuhara, the onetime translator and de facto manager of the Los Angeles Dodgers鈥 power-hitting pitcher,聽pleaded guilty in a deal聽that had been announced last month, a US Attorney spokesperson said. Sentencing will be on Oct. 25.
Mr. Mizuhara鈥檚 lawyer declined to comment.
鈥淭he fraud was deep and the fraud was extensive,鈥 US Attorney Martin Estrada said at a press conference after Mizuhara鈥檚 plea.
A 33-page record of the deal, in which Mr. Mizuhara, 39, agreed to plead guilty to one count of felony bank fraud and one count of subscribing to a false tax return, was previously filed in US District Court in Los Angeles. 鈥 Reuters
