Shohei Ohtani's gambling investigation nearing conclusion as Ippei Mizuhara set to plead guilty against theft charges 

According to the latest reports, Shohei Ohtani's gambling investigation is nearing its end as his ex-interpreter Ippei Mizuhara is in negotiations to plead guilty to allegations of theft.

The scandal came to light last month after the Los Angeles Dodgers started their 2024 MLB campaign in the Seoul Series, when news broke that there have been huge payments made to an illegal gambling operation from Ohtani's account.

Since then, Mizuhara has subsequently been fired by the Dodgers and is under investigation by the IRS. Now, The New York Times' Michael S. Schmidt reported that the former interpreter is negotiating a guilty plea with the authorities, which will likely see the matter end quickly.

Shohei Ohtani met Ippei Mizuhara during his rookie season in Japan's NPB, as the latter returned to the country after spending the majority of his life in the US. They soon developed a friendship which later became a professional relationship when Ohtani hired Mizuhara as his interpreter when he moved to the MLB in 2018. Since then, the two of them have publicly grown to become close friends.

As expected, Ohtani took Mizuhara with him to the Dodgers following his historic signing, but things have gone south for the duo since then. According to the allegations made against the interpreter and how the story has developed so far, Mizuhara was unknowingly involved in making illegal debts on credit. He was soon under huge debt amounting to about $4.5 million, which he allegedly paid off with Ohtani's money without the player's knowledge.

Latest reports from The New York Times now suggest that Mizuhara may have stolen more than the $4.5 million he took to pay off his debts.

Federal investigation reportedly puts Shohei Ohtani in the clear in gambling scandal

While his ex-interpreter Ippei Mizuhara is reportedly negotiating a guilty plea with the authorities, the federal investigation launched into the matter found Shohei Ohtani innocent of any wrongdoing.

Ever since the scandal came to light, the Los Angeles Dodgers star has refused any knowledge of illegal gambling and said that the payments were made without his knowledge. The latest reports suggest that the investigation found that to be true and that there is no evidence of the MLB star being involved or having any knowledge of the matter.