Shohei Ohtani ‘deletes ALL Instagram posts of fired interpreter Ippei Mizuhara’ as the Dodgers star distances himself from friend amid bombshell gambling probe into alleged $4.5m wire transfers

Shohei Ohtani appears to have continued to cut ties with friend and interpreter Ippei Mizuhara amid an investigation into his alleged gambling activities.

Mizuhara, Ohtani’s longtime interpreter, was fired by the Los Angeles Dodgers amid questions surrounding at least $4.5 million in suspicious wire transfers from the pitcher’s bank to a California gambling operation that ESPN reports is under federal investigation.

The Japanese two-way star now appears to have made attempts to distance himself further from his former interpreter.

The Dodgers’ $700million man has scrubbed his Instagram profile of any photos of Mizuhara, according to distinguished Japanese sports website, Nikkan Sports.

The outlet reports that there had been several posts featuring Mizuhara, including a shot of the interpreter with Ohtani’s former Angels teammate Mike Trout during his time on the other side of Los Angeles.

Shohei Ohtani appears to have continued to cut ties with friend and interpreter Ippei Mizuhara

The interpreter was fired by the Los Angeles Dodgers amid questions surrounding at least $4.5 million in suspicious wire transfers from the pitcher’s bank to a California gambling operation

As of Saturday morning, there did not appear to be any trace of Mizuhara on Ohtani’s social media platform.

Mizuhara had worked with Ohtani for years and been a constant presence with him in major league clubhouses. When Ohtani left the Los Angeles Angels in December, the Dodgers also hired Mizuhara.

The social media erasure of Mizuhara comes less than 24 hours after MLB announced it had launched an investigation into his activities. 

According to the Los Angeles Times, Ohtani’s name appeared in a probe by federal investigators of Southern California bookmaker Mathew Bowyer, which led his lawyers to Mizuhara.

It’s alleged that wire-transfer payments worth a reported $4.5million were sent from Ohtani’s account to somebody working on behalf of Bowyer.

Ohtani’s spokespeople first told ESPN on Tuesday that the 29-year-old slugger was covering Mizuhara’s extensive gambling debts. Later, after ESPN spoke with Mizuhara about the allegations, Ohtani spokespeople disavowed the translator’s comments to the network, instead offering a statement from attorneys representing the two-time MVP.

‘In the course of responding to recent media inquiries, we discovered that Shohei has been the victim of a massive theft, and we are turning the matter over to the authorities,’ read the statement from Ohtani’s law firm, Berk Brettler LLP.

The statement did not specifically accuse Mizuhara of stealing, but the Los Angeles Times is reporting that the interpreter is accused of grifting millions from Ohtani. Meanwhile, ESPN is reporting that Mizuhara’s debt totaled at least $4.5 million.

Mizuhara had worked with Ohtani for years and been a constant presence with him

ESPN revealed Friday that they had been following a tip for months, before finally being able to ask questions about it on Monday while Ohtani was with the Dodgers in South Korea.

The interpreter claimed that he didn’t know Bowyer’s operation was illegal – and that his debt grew to $4m by early 2023. It was then that he says he went to Ohtani for help, explained his situation and that Ohtani said he ‘wasn’t happy about it but said he would help me out.’

Mizuhara was asked if Ohtani – who has been vocal against gambling – knew he was in debt with a bookie, to which the interpreter replied that Ohtani ‘didn’t have any clue’.

After Ohtani sent off the money, Mizuhara told ESPN that he promised he would send his friend all the money back eventually.

The Dodgers opened their season in Seoul – with a 5-2 win over the Padres. After that game, Dodgers officials explained the situation to the clubhouse – saying that Ohtani helped cover Mizuhara’s losses and that the story would soon break to the press.

But Ohtani started asking about what was said – and told his representatives that he didn’t recognize Mizuhara’s account of the events.

Dodgers officials and Ohtani’s spokesperson said that they had been relying on Mizuhara to communicate with Ohtani while they dealt with the situation – and that Mizuhara didn’t tell Ohtani what was happening. It was on Wednesday that Ohtani claims he discovered that money was missing from his account for the first time.

Ohtani’s lawyers then issued the statement to ESPN saying that Shohei had ‘been the victim of a massive theft and we are turning the authorities’. Mizuhara was fired shortly after the statement was released.

The social media erasure of Mizuhara comes after MLB announced it had launched a probe

ESPN contacted Mizuhara again and he admitted to lying in his previous interview. He denied over the phone that he is represented by Ohtani’s people, that he isn’t being paid to say this, and that he hasn’t made any agreements. He confirmed that he lied to Shohei but denied betting on baseball.

When asked by ESPN, ‘Did you take the money from Shohei’s accounts without his knowledge?’, Mizuhara did not respond.

Ohtani’s spokespeople said that Mizuhara was able to control information relayed to him through his position as a translator – and that Ohtani hadn’t realized what was happening until the postgame clubhouse meeting when a new interpreter was brought in.

Ohtani’s representatives have also said that they’ve submitted an allegation into law enforcement to open an investigation.