More and more details from Ippei Mizuhara’s swindling of Shohei Ohtani have begun to emerge. One particular three-day exchange between the former translator and his bookmaker perhaps sums up how crippling Mizuhara’s addiction — and willingness to steal from Ohtani — was.
The 37-page federal criminal complaint filed Thursday against the 39-year-old shed light on just how Mizuhara managed to steal millions of dollars from Ohtani.
The complaint also included text messages between Mizuhara and the bookmaker he used to illegally place bets in California.
A 2023 text exchange between the two from June 22 to June 24, seen on Page 14, section D up to section F of the complaint, showed Mizuhara hinting at losing big and asking for “one last bump” from the bookie on three consecutive days.
“I got my a– kicked again lol … Any chance I can get one last bump? This will be my last one for a while if I lose it,” sent on June 22 of last year.
Mizuhara had used “bump” to indicate an additional line of credit with the illegal sportsbook.
The bookmaker agreed and in return requested a guaranteed minimum of $500K in weekly payments. Mizuhara messaged the next day, seemingly after another loss. He also hinted at a “significant” balance of gambling debt owed.
“I’m the worst lol … I can’t catch a break. … Can I get one last bump? I swear this is gonna be my last until I get the balance down significantly … I promise this will be the last bump for a while,” Mizuhara sent on June 23, 2023.
The bookmaker agreed to grant Mizuhara a second “last bump.” But on June 24, Mizuhara messaged the bookie again for a third straight day following another loss.
In the June 24 message, Mizuhara acknowledged that he had “a problem” and begged for “one last last last bump,” which the bookmaker once again granted.
You can read all of Mizuhara’s text exchanges with his bookmaker in the original complaint found here.
Calling Mizuhara’s addiction and concurrent transgressions against Ohtani “a problem” is certainly a massive understatement. The total amount Mizuhara allegedly stole reached an incredibly high sum.
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