Bookmaker tied to Ippei Mizuhara case to plead guilty

Dec 14, 2023; Los Angeles, CA, USA; Ippei Mizuhara, the translator for Los Angeles Dodgers designated hitter Shohei Ohtani, during an introductory press conference at Dodger Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports

The illegal bookmaker tied to the case involving Ippei Mizuhara accepted a plea deal that will see him plead guilty next week to bookmaking and money laundering charges.

Mathew Bowyer, the bookmaker that Shohei Ohtani’s former translator gambled with, was charged in June and will plead guilty in federal court on Aug. 9, via Tisha Thompson of ESPN . This is the first time charging documents relating to Bowyer have been unsealed, and it is the first concrete proof that Bowyer has even been under federal investigation.

As part of the plea deal, Bowyer admitted to receiving more than $4 million in unreported income in 2022 as a result of his bookmaking business. Bowyer had at least 700 gambling clients betting with him.

Bowyer’s operation gained attention when Mizuhara, at the time Ohtani’s personal translator, defrauded Ohtani in an attempt to pay off his gambling debts . Mizuhara also accepted a plea deal and will be sentenced in October. Ohtani had no real part in the scandal, and MLB definitively cleared him as simply a victim of fraud earlier this season.

Bowyer faces up to 18 years in prison, though he will likely receive a lesser sentence by taking a plea deal.

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