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The story
Ippei Mizuhara, Shohei Ohtani’s former personal interpreter, is serving a 4-year-9-month prison sentence at a federal facility in Pennsylvania after being convicted in February 2025 of illegally wiring roughly $17 million (about ¥2.7 billion) from Ohtani’s bank account to an illegal sports betting operation. This October, two and a half years after the scandal broke, one of Ohtani’s signed jerseys went up for auction on a major U.S. online auction site and sold — and it’s been reported that the seller was Matthew Bowyer, the bookmaker who received the wired funds, with Mizuhara himself reportedly involved in the listing. On 5ch, reactions included comments like “so the theory that Ippei was really the mastermind was true after all,” alongside growing interest in why Mizuhara’s expected release date has been pushed back.
Ippei Mizuhara, Shohei Ohtani’s former personal interpreter, was convicted in February 2025 and sentenced to 4 years and 9 months in prison for illegally wiring roughly $17 million (about ¥2.7 billion) from Ohtani’s bank account to an illegal sports betting operation. He is currently serving his sentence at a federal prison in Pennsylvania.
In mid-October this year, two and a half years after the scandal came to light, one of Ohtani’s signed jerseys was put up for sale on a major U.S. online auction site and was sold. It turns out the jersey was listed by none other than Matthew Bowyer, the illegal bookmaker who had received the roughly $17 million at the center of the case. And behind the listing, it’s reported, was Mizuhara himself.
Nonfiction writer Takehide Mizutani, who covers the full story behind the illegal gambling case involving Mizuhara in his new book Sacred and Profane: The True Face of Ippei Mizuhara, the Man Who Betrayed Shohei Ohtani (Shogakukan, on sale November 16), reports. [Part one of a two-part feature]
Source: news-postseven.com / Original article here
What people said
Turns out he was the one getting exploited… 😭
Can't say for sure since we don't know the details, but one thing's certain — Ohtani himself is the one at fault.
The FBI investigation confirmed that. Ohtani cooperated fully with the investigation right away, so the FBI announced it early.
Sounds fishy lol
A spokesperson for Allenwood Federal Correctional Institution explained the delay in Mizuhara's release date as follows:
"Release date delays are generally due to the possibility that the inmate committed some kind of violation within the facility. However, we can't comment on individual cases. All we can say right now is that his release date is currently set for March 23, 2029. If you want to know the reason for the delay, maybe write him a letter and ask him directly."
Did Inmate Ippei Mizuhara Violate Prison Rules? His Release Date Has Been Pushed Back (Published November 8, 2026) – https://share.google/cksbunn61gaJcuEa6
Wonder what kind of violation it was?
Something huge.
Dig all the way down.
The FBI already dug all the way down lol
Not sure if it's true for Ippei, but apparently his release got pushed back.
Normally you'd think they'd dig more into the bookie.
Only the ultra-rich can afford a lawyer who charges ¥400,000 an hour.
His life might be in danger once he's out.
They say he withdrew his winnings from bets and wired them to family — there's no way the mafia would just let that slide.
And on top of that, he was shopping at high-end supermarkets right up until he went in.
The bookie didn't actually steal any money, so lol
It's like some massive organization has him by a fatal weakness and is ordering him to 'strike out.'
At least as a genuine fan, given his actual talent, I think a stat line like this just doesn't add up.
'A stat line like this'? His batting stats are top of the team lol.
Isn't he #1 in both home runs and OPS?
Then don't open the thread lol
Can't post in it without opening it, can you?
If you're not interested, you wouldn't even open the thread in the first place lol
Background and Key Points of This Story
The roughly $17 million Mizuhara wired amounts to about ¥2.7 billion in Japanese yen, and his February 2025 sentencing handed him 4 years and 9 months in prison. The bookmaker who received the money, Matthew Bowyer, by contrast received a sentence of just 12 months and one day — a disparity that drew questions on the thread. The FBI investigation reportedly treated Ohtani himself as a victim who cooperated fully, and concluded that the illegal gambling involvement was Mizuhara’s alone. Some thread comments speculate about Ohtani’s own involvement, but that’s personal conjecture at odds with the official investigation findings, and should be read as such. Separately, as of November 2026, Mizuhara’s expected release date has been pushed back to March 23, 2029, and prison officials have not disclosed the reason for the delay.
*This article is excerpted and summarized from the 5ch (Geisports Sokuho+) thread “Shohei Ohtani’s Signed Jersey Was Put Up for Auction by the Illegal Gambling Bookmaker! The Shocking Backstory Revealed: ‘I Got It From Ippei Mizuhara’ [Ailuropoda melanoleuca★]“
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