Los Angeles Dodgers luminary Shohei Ohtani is on the offensive against his former interpreter over a conspicuous case of fraud involving baseball memorabilia. According to court documents filed Tuesday, which CBS News Los Angeles obtained, Ohtani is demanding the return of roughly $325,000 worth of baseball cards that he asserts were illegitimately purchased by Ippei Mizuhara using funds siphoned from the athlete’s account.
On top of the hefty amount spent on trading cards, the documents allege Mizuhara commenced his financial manipulation around November 2021, toying with account security to impersonate Ohtani for wire transfers. As per the allegations, the former interpreter's shopping spree on eBay and Whatnot had misappropriated Ohtani's money up through 2024. According to The Associated Press, Michael G. Freedman, the attorney for Mizuhara, has declined to comment on these legal woes.
This twist came after Mizuhara's June plea of guilty to charges of bank and tax fraud, following his arrest for embezzling nearly $17 million from Ohtani's accounts, confirming the betrayal of their previous off-field camaraderie. As reported by USA Today, sentencing is scheduled for January when Mizuhara faces more than 30 years in federal prison.
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