Shohei Ohtani finally opened his mouth.
Los Angeles Dodgers pitcher Ohtani held a press conference at Dodger Stadium, his home stadium, on the 26th (Korea Standard Time) and expressed his position on the recent situation.
This was the first time he opened his mouth after the controversy over illegal gambling by former interpreter Mizuhara Ifei broke out.
Mizuhara allegedly stole 4.5 million dollars from Ohtani’s account. At first, Mizuhara stirred controversy by saying that Ohtani paid off his gambling debts.
According to local media such as “The Athletic,” Ohtani issued a statement for about 12 minutes without being asked.
Ohtani, who appeared at the press conference with new interpreter Willie Iaito, said, “It’s so sad and shocking that someone I trusted did this.”
“Itpay stole money from my account and has been lying,” he said, adding that the former interpreter lied to him.
That Ohtani claimed it was a “complete lie” to say that he paid off his gambling debt on behalf of him.
Mizuhara is said to have owed 4.5 million dollars while betting on sports through an illegal gambler. She was caught secretly transferring money from her Ohtani account to repay the debt.
“When I was in Korea last weekend, the media asked me through my lawyer if I had been involved in gambling,” Ohtani said. “And instead of telling me, Ipay told the media and my lawyer, ‘Ohtani paid me back my debt as a friend. And he told me that he constantly discussed the matter with me,” he said, claiming that all of these were “complete lies.”
Mizuhara held a meeting after the first game of the Seoul Series and explained the current situation to the team.
At the meeting, Ohtani said he did not understand all of Mizuhara’s words in English, but “I knew something was wrong.”
Later, Ohtani added that he faced Mizuhara one-on-one on a trip to the team hotel, where he first learned about Mizuhara’s gambling addiction and the behavior of stealing his money. 룸알바
Ohtani, who was suspected of being involved in gambling due to the interpreter’s fault, said, “I did not bet on any sports as well as baseball. I never asked anyone to do it for me. I have never contacted a gambler, nor have I agreed to pay my debts to him,” making it clear that Mizuhara’s act of deviation was committed.
The MLB Secretariat announced an investigation into the case. “We will have lawyers deal with it,” Ohtani said, adding that he would “fully cooperate” with the investigation process.